Regression
by revenanttrickster
Summary: Kuroko accidentally ate a special candy that turned him into a kid for seven days. Because of that, Seirin and the Generation of Miracles take turns in taking care of the boy. Join little Kuroko and his adventures with all of his nii-chan and nee-chan.
1. Chapter 1: It's Just Vanilla Candy

**Title :** **Regression**

**By: revenanttrickster**

**Disclaimer: Kuroko no Basket is owned by Fujimaki Tadatoshi**

* * *

**Chapter 1: It's just vanilla candy…**

* * *

The basketball club of Seirin high school was having their usual practice in the gym. They were having a break when Kiyoshi approached their captain.

"Hyuuga look!"

Hyuuga looked at a piece of candy in Kiyoshi's hand. "It's just a candy. What about it?"

Kiyoshi smiled. "It's not just an ordinary candy. The old lady at the store said that it's a candy that will turn you into a kid if you eat it."

The second year players stared at him in disbelief (the freshmen weren't there since they helped Riko with some errand). Hyuuga glared at Kiyoshi. "As if that could happen. Don't believe everything you hear!"

"But it's kind of amusing, isn't it? If that was true, who would you like to see turn into a kid?" Izuki asked his teammates.

Koganei smiled mischievously. "Oh~ How about Kagami? I want to see if he had that scary look in his face when he was a kid!" Everyone laughed when they tried to imagine it.

"Actually, what I want to see is Kuroko," Kiyoshi suggested.

Hyuuga raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Aren't you curious what Kuroko looked when he was a kid? Did he had a weak presence ever since?"

They all nodded. "That's true."

Hyuuga pushed his glasses at the bridge of his nose. "Even so, whether that candy has magic or not, keep it. Coach will get mad if you brought something ridiculous to practice."

Kiyoshi sadly look at the candy in his hand. "I guess you're right. I'll have to hide the rest as well."

"You have more?" Tsuchida asked.

"Yes, I left them at the bench." Precisely, after Kiyoshi said that, they heard Kagami and Kuroko.

"Hey Kuroko, there are vanilla candies here. You want some?"

"Is it even yours Kagami-kun?"

"It's fine right? It's just candies."

"Well, alright then. _Itadakimasu_."

"NO! WAIT!" the seniors tried to stop the light and shadow duo.

Kagami turned to them. "What's wrong…uh senpai?"

*POOF*

The seniors didn't have a chance to answer when they saw a puff of smoke behind Kagami. They all watched in baited breath for the smoke to clear only for their jaws to drop and eyes widen in shock. Because standing there, was Kuroko…turned to a _kid_.

* * *

Riko, as well as the freshman trio, opened the door to the gym and found the rest of the team looking pale and anxious. They tried to avert their eyes from their coach.

"Y-Yo Coach," Hyuuga greeted their coach nervously.

"What's going on here?" Riko asked looking at all of them suspiciously.

"N-Nothing."

Riko glared at them and noticed Kagami behind the seniors, crouching as if hiding something. "What are you doing Kagami?" Kagami tried to say something but was interrupted by a loud wail. A _kid's _wail.

"H-Hey now…calm down. It's okay…uh…how about I carry you?" Kagami said to someone. Kagami picked a kid up in his arms and turned to face his coach.

Riko stared wide-eyed at Kagami and the kid he was carrying. "W-Who is that?"

"U-Uh…it's Kuroko," Kagami answered hesitantly.

Riko, for the first time, actually fainted.

"Coach!"

* * *

"And that's what happened," Kiyoshi finished explaining what happened to their coach.

Riko smacked him in the head with her paper fan. "Why are you smiling while explaining the situation? It's your entire fault! If you haven't brought those candies, none of this would have happened! And how can some candies turn a person into a kid! This isn't supposed to be possible!"

Hyuuga tried to calm her down. "C-Coach calm down."

"How can I calm down?!"

"Captain is right, Coach. Relax, you're scaring Kuroko," Kagami interjected.

Riko studied Kuroko, who was still being carried by Kagami. Kuroko looked like his older self except much cuter. He was still wearing his own clothes which, thankfully, also shrank. His chubby cheeks were a little red due to crying. His little fists were tightly clutching Kagami's shirt. And most important of all, his eyes that were usually expressionless were full of emotions, and it shows how frightened he was. That sad look tugged Riko's heart that she wants to hug the poor boy to death. Riko held out her arms, "I'm sorry Kuroko-kun. It's okay now. How about onee-san carry you?" Little Kuroko stared at her for a moment before burying his face on Kagami's chest. Riko's heart broke a little. "Why doesn't he want me?" she cried.

Kiyoshi tried to pacify their coach. "It's okay Riko, it's not just you. He's a bit wary towards us except for Kagami. Kuroko is pretty much attached to him."

"Like a baby chick imprinting with his mother. He –"

"Die Izuki," Hyuuga butted in before he makes one of his lame puns.

"But, why an idiot like him? He's Bakagami!" Riko complained, pointing at Kagami.

"Hey!"

Riko ignored him and sighed. "So he really doesn't remember any of us?"

"No, he really reverted to a kid," Kagami replied.

"How old do you think he is?" Koganei wondered, peering at Kuroko.

"Kagami, why don't you ask him? I think he will listen to you," Kiyoshi advised.

"I guess I'll try," Kagami stared at the kid in his arms. "Hey Kuroko." He waited for Kuroko to look up at him before continuing, "How old are you?" Kuroko tilted his head at Kagami before raising one of his hands, showing all his five fingers at him.

"So you're five." Kuroko nodded.

"Can you talk?" Kuroko, once again, nodded.

"So Kuroko, you don't know my name yet, right?" Kuroko shook his head.

Kagami smiled and introduced himself, "My name is Kagami Taiga, you can call me Kagami. Why don't you try it?"

Kuroko fiddled with his own fingers and shyly gaze up at Kagami. "Ka…ga…"

"Come on, you can do it. Ka-ga-mi," Kagami coax him.

"Ka…ga…mi. Kagami-kun!"

Kagami grinned and pat him on the head. "Good job kid." Kuroko, liking his praise so much, beamed at him. Kagami tried to fight the urge to blush since this is the first time he saw Kuroko's bright smile (and he swore he could see sparkles around him). The rest of the Seirin team blushed when they saw Kuroko's smile. Kagami persuaded Kuroko to introduce himself to the team. "Why don't you introduce yourself Kuroko? They're all nice, you'll like them. They are my tea – I mean my uh…friends."

Kuroko stared at Kagami before taking a peek at the rest of the team. "O-Okay," Kuroko quietly agreed. Kagami crouched and put Kuroko down. Kuroko toyed with his shirt. "I…I'm Kuroko Tetsuya. Nice to meet you," he bowed to them.

Kiyoshi bent down and offered his hand. "I'm Kiyoshi Teppei. Just call me Kiyoshi nii-chan, okay?" Kuroko reluctantly accepted his hand and nodded.

Riko followed Kiyoshi's example and introduced herself as well. "I'm Aida Riko. Call me Riko nee-chan Kuroko-kun. I'm sorry for scaring you earlier. Why don't I carry you?"

Kuroko glanced at Kagami, asking for permission. "Go on. Do what you want," Kagami encourage him. Kuroko nodded and held out his arms towards Riko. Riko squealed before carrying him, she pointed at Hyuuga and introduced him. "That's Hyuuga Junpei."

"You can call me Hyuuga nii-chan Kuroko," Hyuuga said.

"Hyu-Hyuuga nii-chan," Kuroko said adorably.

Hyuuga patted him on the head. "That's right."

Riko continued the introduction, "Beside him is Izuki Shun."

Izuki smiled at Kuroko. "Just call me Izuki nii-chan, actually –"

Before he could finish his awesome (not really) pun, Koganei interrupted him. "I'm Koganei Shinji. Call me Koga nii-chan." Koganei gestured towards Mitobe who was beside him, "And this is Mitobe Rinnosuke. You can call him Mitobe nii-chan." Mitobe smiled at Kuroko and gave him a (normal) candy. Kuroko took the candy and beamed at Mitobe. "Thank you Mitobe nii-chan!"

'_So cute~_' everyone in Seirin team thought.

"I'm Tsuchida Satoshi. Tsuchida nii-chan is fine," Tsuchida introduced himself.

"Nice to meet you Kuroko, I'm Furihata Kouki. Just call me Furihata nii-chan." Kuroko nodded at his greeting.

"I'm Kawahara Kouichi. Call me Kawahara nii-chan, okay Kuroko?"

"Hello Kuroko, I'm Fukuda Hiroshi. You can call me Fukuda nii-chan just like the rest, alright?"

Kuroko nodded and smiled. "Nice to meet you all."

After the freshmen's introduction, Riko looked around the gym. "Okay, that's everyone –"

"AH!"

The Seirin team whirled towards Kagami who screamed, they saw him standing petrified with Tetsuya Nigou beside him. "Oh! Almost forgot," Riko put down Kuroko in front of Nigou. "Kuroko-kun, this is Tetsuya Nigou. Nigou for short."

With his finger in chin, he cutely tilted his head at Riko and asked, "Tetsuya?"

Riko inwardly screamed at the cuteness. "He has the same eyes as you so we call him that."

Kuroko stared at Nigou before he tried petting him on the head. Nigou wagged his tail in excitement and proceeded to lick Kuroko's face. Kuroko laughed, "That tickles!"

Once again, everyone blushed at the sweet and endearing scene that they were witnessing.

"Kuroko is so cute! He's really different from the Kuroko we know," Koganei observed.

"Still we need Kuroko to turn back to his true age. Well Kiyoshi, you bought that candy, you should know how to turn him back," Hyuuga assumed.

Kiyoshi grinned. "Actually, I don't know how to turn him back!"

Hyuuga snapped, grabbed Kiyoshi's collar and started shaking him. "Don't look so happy when you don't know the answer!"

"Calm down Hyuuga-kun. The old lady at the store told Teppei about the candies, she should know how to reverse its effect."

"Then we should ask her when we get home," Izuki suggested.

"We should turn him back before anyone sees him," Koganei reminded them.

"Like who senpai?" Furihata asked.

"The Generation of Miracles, of course!"

"That's right! Those guys are a bunch of weirdoes, who knows what they will do to Kuroko when they'll see him like this," Kagami exclaimed.

Riko crossed her arms. "You're right. It's a good thing that they're attending different schools."

Everyone turned to Kuroko who was playing with Nigou, the pleasant and adorable scene immediately warmed their hearts and their overprotective instinct shot up. Riko eyed them with purpose, "Okay then, here's what we're going to do. First, we're going to turn back Kuroko to his former self. Second, protect him while he's still a kid and always be on guard he might get kidnapped or something. And lastly, do not let other people we know see him like this, especially the Generation of Miracles. Am I understood?"

The Seirin team nodded determinedly. "Yes ma'am!"

All of a sudden, they heard the gym door opened and they all groaned when they saw who it was.

"Hello Seirin~ I've come to see Kurokocchi~!"

Well, it looks like fate has another plan, though.

* * *

… **No, it's not!**


	2. Chapter 2: Yellow to the Rescue

**Title :** **Regression**

**By: revenanttrickster**

**Disclaimer: Kuroko no Basket is owned by Fujimaki Tadatoshi**

**A/N:** Yay! Thank you to: **Kuro-Maggie, sHirou, Crossroader32, luchiaseiren, Kuroshiroryuu, Bluebird, A, Zhizn214, Zedax, NekoTama-1110, ruhanasasumaru, Anonymouse, My Lunatic Crow **for those awesome reviews. And thank you also for those who favorite and follow this story. All of you made me so happy XD And without further ado, here's the next chapter!

* * *

**Chapter 2: Yellow to the rescue…**

* * *

While walking, Kise was deciding on where he should go since there were no basketball practice today also his seniors were busy doing their own things and couldn't accompany him. His manager called as well and told him that his photo shoot was rescheduled. He stopped when he noticed he was in a familiar neighborhood. "That's it! I could visit Kurokocchi. It's been a while since I last saw him anyway." With that decided, Kise walked merrily to Seirin High School to see his former beloved instructor. What he doesn't know is that his former instructor is a bit…_different_.

When he arrived at Seirin High, he was – of course – bombarded by his fan girls. Being the gentleman that he is, he entertained them for a moment before excusing himself and went to the school gym. He opened the door and greeted the Seirin basketball club enthusiastically, "Hello Seirin~ I've come to see Kurokocchi~!" He thought they were practicing like they usually did whenever he visits but what he saw made him sweat dropped. Some players were running around in circles (are they panicking?), some just stood there looking pale and fidgety and he even saw Kagami running away with Nigou trailing behind him (wait, was that a kid he was carrying?).

He went towards Seirin's coach and asked, "U-Um…Am I bothering you guys?"

Riko's eyes wandered around and couldn't meet Kise's gaze. She started fiddling with her whistle. "N-Not at all. Ha Ha Ha…Ha…" Riko responded uneasily.

Kise was worried and curious as to why everyone were acting strangely but he set it aside and remembered the reason he went there. "Where's Kurokocchi? I haven't seen him yet." Due to Kuroko's weak presence he was kind of hard to notice so Kise looked around and even behind him but there was no sign of the teal head boy.

"Kuroko is not here," Hyuuga, the captain, answered him.

"Really? Why?"

"He's sick!"

"He left to run some errand!"

"He went to China to eat some Kung Pao chicken!"

Everyone stared (more like glared in Seirin's case) at Koganei's excuse. Riko whacked him in the head with her paper fan. "Why would Kuroko go to China to eat some chicken, you idiot!"

Kise was now suspicious at Seirin's weird behavior and he knows it has something to do with the phantom player. He asked Kiyoshi, who was beside him, where Kagami was.

Kiyoshi scratched the back of his head. "He didn't attend practice today. He was…uh busy."

Kise eyed him dubiously. "But I just saw Kagamicchi running that way." He pointed the direction Kagami went. The Seirin team couldn't respond and just laughed nervously. Kise was going to demand what's going on when he heard a loud cry. "Eh? Is that a kid crying? Why is there a kid here?"

"I-It's uh…um…Mi-Mitobe's brother! That's it! It's Mitobe's younger brother," Riko stuttered. And Mitobe nodded in agreement.

Kise started to say something when he felt something brushed passed his legs, he gawked at the kid – who has the same hair color as Kuroko – hugging the legs of Seirin's coach. Riko crouched down and hugged the boy. "What's wrong? Did something happen?"

The kid rubbed his eyes (cutely, to them) and told her what happened while sniffing. "Ka-Kagami-kun *sniff* left *sniff* me…"

"That Bakagami!"

Said person came rushing towards them, shouting, "Kuroko!" He relieved a sigh when he saw him with his coach. "There you are! I thought you've been kidnapped or something."

Hearing Kagami's voice, Kuroko perked up and immediately ran to him. "Kagami-kun!" He held out his tiny arms to Kagami, asking to be carried.

Kagami took him in his arms and scolded him, "Kuroko I told you stay there, didn't I? Don't run off again." Kuroko nodded and buried his face on Kagami's shoulder.

"Ka-Kagamicchi did you just called him Ku-Kuroko?" Kise asked hesitantly, pointing at the kid in Kagami's arms.

The Seirin team forgot that the ace of Kaijou and Kuroko's former teammate in Teikou was there.

Kagami started to sweat. "Th-This is…uh…Kuroko's…uh…cousin! Kuroko's cousin."

"Really? But your coach said that it was Mitobe's younger brother."

Riko started to sweat as well. "D-Did I say that? I meant Kuroko's cousin."

Kise scrutinized the teal head kid. "He looks _exactly _like Kurokocchi."

"O-Of course, they are related," Riko insisted.

Kise regarded Kagami with distrust. "If that is really Kurokocchi's cousin, then where is Kurokocchi? He wouldn't leave his cousin to his teammates like that, he's not that irresponsible."

"Uh…well…" Kagami tried to say.

Kise had enough and burst out his conclusion. "That's Kurokocchi, isn't it? Don't lie! I don't know how he turned into a kid but I know that's Kurokocchi!"

Having heard his name (in an odd honorific no less), Kuroko took a peek at the blond who was talking (more like arguing) to Kagami. Kise spotted Kuroko peeking at the corner of his eye and instantly flashed him a bright smile. "Hello~ you're Kurokocchi – I mean Kuroko Tetsuya, right?" Kuroko nodded warily.

Kise blushed at the bashfulness Kuroko was showing which was different from the usual deadpan Kuroko that he knows. "I'm Kise Ryouta. I'm a friend of Kagamicchi~"

"No, you're not! And stop adding 'cchi ' to my name!"

Kise (even Kuroko) ignored Kagami's outburst. Kuroko blinked. "Kise?"

Kise nodded eagerly. "Call me Kise nii-chan~"

"Kise nii-chan," Kuroko repeated.

Kise blushed again and he could feel his heart beating wildly against his chest. "Give me Kurokocchi, Kagamicchi! I want to carry him! I want to hug him!"

"As if I would!"

Kuroko doesn't know why but when he heard what the blond said, he felt something he can't describe. So he blurted out the first thing that came to mind, "Pervert."

Everyone paused at the word Kuroko uttered. Kagami couldn't help it and laughed out loud. "He said you're a pervert Kise!"

Kise cried and flailed his arms. "Kurokocchi don't say that! I'm not a pervert!"

* * *

"A candy that can turn a person into a kid," Kise repeated what Riko explained to him about Kuroko's sudden change of appearance; he was sitting on the bench with Kuroko in his lap. It took a lot of pleading ("Please, Kurokocchi!" "I don't want to." "Kurokocchi!"), and convincing from the team for Kuroko to go near Kise. He only agreed when Kagami (reluctantly) told him that Kise isn't a pervert like he thought. Kise pouted at the huge influence Kagami has on Kuroko but left it at that since he get to hug little Kuroko.

"Kurokocchi is really cute as a kid, much cuter than the pictures I saw," Kise said. Kise still called Kuroko, Kurokocchi, like usual seeing as Kuroko didn't seem to mind.

"Pictures?" Izuki probed.

Kise smiled at the memory. "Un! We were having a study session at Kurokocchi's house and he showed us his pictures when he was little."

"When you said we, you mean the Generation of Miracles?" Kiyoshi inquired.

"Yes, even Akashicchi was there."

Hyuuga, who was deep in thought, rubbed underneath his chin and said, "So they'll know that it's Kuroko once they see him like this."

"Of course, even if he's appearance is a kid, he's still Kurokocchi after all," Kise said and rubbed his own cheeks with Kuroko's.

"Stop it, Kise nii-chan. It's annoying," Kuroko deadpanned, almost like the sixteen year old Kuroko does.

"Uwaah! Kurokocchi is so mean!"

Everyone sweat dropped, '_Kuroko turned to a kid but he still treats Kise the same._'

"Then, how come it's okay if it's Kagamicchi?" Kise complained.

"Because it's Kagami-kun!" Kuroko happily exclaimed gazing at Kagami with stars in his eyes.

Kise glowered at Kagami for that, he wants little Kuroko to look at him adoringly, too.

Kagami crossed his arms and smirked. "It's not my fault that he likes me more than you."

Kise pouted at that but knows Kagami has a point. He took a peek at the adorable little Kuroko in his lap. As much as he wants to hold, hug and cuddle little Kuroko (because he can't do those things to older Kuroko), he needs to turn back to normal. "How long is he going to stay like these anyway?"

"We don't know," Riko replied hopelessly.

"Kise has a point. What if the candy's effect lasts for a whole day and he can't turn back to normal tomorrow?" Tsuchida contemplated.

"We could dress him up! I have lots of cute and pretty clothes I can lend him. He'll look so cute in it and we can even take pictures!" Kise said excitedly.

"He's not a doll, you idiot!" Kagami shouted at him.

"But those clothes will suit him and don't you want pictures as a souvenir when Kurokocchi goes back to normal?"

Kagami blushed when he imagined Kuroko in cute clothes and he _might _want a souvenir of little Kuroko. Kagami pushed those disturbing thoughts aside and yelled at Kise, "This is the reason why I don't want any of you Generation of Miracles near Kuroko!"

"Stop being selfish! You just want Kurokocchi all to yourself!" Kise argued back.

Riko had enough and gave them both a chilling death glare. "Stop it, you two."

"Yes," both boys nodded in fear.

"You're coach is very scary, Kagamicchi," Kise whispered to Kagami.

"I know, right?"

Riko frowned at them. "Huh? Did you say something?"

The two aces shook their heads hard.

"In any case, how do you get Kurokocchi to turn back to normal?" Kise asked the Seirin team.

"We were going to ask the old lady at the store on our way home," Kiyoshi answered him.

"Hmm… if there were candies that can turn you as a kid, does that mean there's also a candy that can make you older," Kise mused.

"Kuroko might return to normal if we let him eat that candy!" Koganei presumed.

Riko glared at him. "Idiot! We don't know what will happen to Kuroko if he eats those kinds of candies. What we need is an antidote not another suspicious candy."

"Sorry."

Riko angrily turned to Kise. "And you, stop spouting outrageous ideas!"

Kise sweat dropped and nodded in fear. "So you're going to that store after your practice?"

Riko relaxed and shook her head. "No, I'm canceling practice today. We need to go to that store right away. The sooner we get there, the better."

"Can I come along?" Kise asked.

Riko sighed. "Fine, since you already know anyway."

"Yay! I'm going with Kurokocchi~!"

"What's more, we can't other people see Kuroko like this," Furihata added.

Kise turned to him in confusion. "Other people?"

"Like the rest of the Generation of Miracles," Kagami declared.

"Eh? Why not? They can help us look for an antidote and even take care of Kurokocchi."

"No way! All of you, Generation of Miracles, are a bunch of crazy and weirdoes. You might do something strange to Kuroko."

Kise sweat dropped. "Just what do you think the Generation of Miracles are?"

"Anyway, we just need to change in our uniforms and then we can leave," Hyuuga butted in at the two aces.

Kise hugged little Kuroko closer to him. "Then, I'll take care of Kurokocchi while the rest of you do that~"

The gym doors, once again, opened and they heard a familiar voice. "Tetsu-kun!"

The Seirin basketball club groaned. '_Not again!_'

* * *

… **Or not.**

* * *

**Next Chapter: His light...**

**A/N:** I was thinking of writing some omakes, so any ideas?


	3. Chapter 3: His Light

**Title :** **Regression**

**By: revenanttrickster**

**Disclaimer: Kuroko no Basket is owned by Fujimaki Tadatoshi**

**A/N:** Thank you to all my readers, you guys are awesome :D Thank you to all my reviewers: **samijackson, LenXKagamine12234, kikigirl4321, BlueberryFridge, AnimeAngelChick, Kuroshiroryuu, Crossroader32, My Lunatic Crow, Pennilee, SinJaLOVE, sHirou, Kuro-Maggie, Guest, Anonymouse, Quetoa, ruhanasasunaru, NekoTama-1110, BrokenBlackCat, kiseki46, Shald120, newerher3**. And to those who favorite and follow this story, thank you as well. I hope you enjoy this chapter, too!

* * *

**Chapter 3: His light…**

* * *

The ace and manager of Touou Academy basketball club were walking towards Seirin High School to pay a visit to their former phantom teammate. Well, more like the manager was dragging the ace along.

Aomine groaned. "C'mon Satsuki, do I really have to come along?"

"Mou, Dai-chan don't you want to see Tetsu-kun?" Momoi pouted at him.

"I'm fine with seeing Tetsu. What I don't want is to see that Bakagami's face," Aomine lazily added.

"It's fine, right? It's just for a short while after their practice we can invite Tetsu-kun to some GoriGori-kun popsicles with us, just like when we were in middle school."

At that thought, Aomine remembered the times when he ate GoriGori-kun with Kuroko after their basketball practice. The times when all the Generation of Miracles were having fun relaxing at the nearest convenience store after a grueling menu from Akashi. Those good times when he had fun playing basketball and when the Generation of Miracles was still considered a team. Before all of them, one by one, got stronger, relied in their own strength and their bonds shattered like a broken glass. Aomine forcefully kicked those depressing thoughts aside; he and Kuroko were all right now, there's no use dwelling on the past.

"Dai-chan, you okay?" Momoi worriedly asked. "You spaced out for a minute."

"I'm fine," Aomine assured the pink-haired girl.

They arrived at their destination and went to the direction of the school gym. On the way, they heard two girls talking animatedly and their conversation caught their interest.

"You're so lucky! You got to meet him and even had his autograph!" the first girl said in envy.

"I know! Kyaa! Kise-sama is so hot!" the second girl prattled.

Momoi watched them for a moment before turning to her childhood friend. "It looks like Ki-chan is here as well."

Aomine didn't say anything but braced himself at seeing the face of that hot-headed Kagami and hearing Kise's annoying babbles. On second thought, he should also prepare himself at Kuroko's habit of popping out of nowhere. Sometimes, he thought, Kuroko is doing that on purpose just to scare them.

They reached the gym and Momoi opened the doors and called her beloved's name in greeting, "Tetsu-kun!" They saw the Seirin team (plus Kise) huddling in a corner.

"Just do it Kagami or I'll double your menu," Riko whispered angrily at Seirin's ace. They were trying to hide Kuroko under the bench.

Kagami, who doesn't want to experience his coach's hellish menu, had no choice but to agree. "Fine."

Momoi tried to peek at what they were doing, "Um, what are you doing?"

"Nothing!" all of them said in unison.

Momoi and Aomine, of course, didn't believe them. Momoi could see that something was up even if they tried to act casual and normal. While Aomine got a feeling that something wasn't right and his instinct never failed him before so he knows that something was amiss.

Momoi tried to find her phantom crush, "Where's Tetsu-kun?"

"Kuroko is not here," Izuki answered the Touou manager.

"Eh? Why?"

"He left earlier," Kiyoshi excused.

'_This feels like Déjà vu!_' is what Seirin thought.

Momoi looked disappointed at not seeing her crush whereas Aomine examined them and his instinct told him that they were lying and trying to hide some secret. He flat-out told them what he thinks, "You're lying."

Everyone turned to Aomine in surprised.

"If what you're saying is true, then how come Kise is still here? He wouldn't stay if Tetsu wasn't around. Another is Kagami, he isn't complaining that I'm here like usual. He isn't even challenging me for some one-on-one match. And besides, Tetsu isn't the type to skip practice without a reasonable excuse. All of you are hiding something and I know it concerns Tetsu."

Everyone gaped at him in disbelief. '_He's too perceptive!_'

Even Momoi was stunned at Aomine's detailed observation. '_Since when did Dai-chan get so smart?_'

Kise sighed and turned to Kuroko's current teammates. "Maybe we should tell them. It's Aominecchi and Momocchi, you can trust them."

Everyone in Seirin was pondering about it when they heard Momoi suddenly gasped. They set their sights on Momoi whose eyes were widening in shock and a slack-jawed Aomine who was staring at something behind them. They spun around and spotted little Kuroko hugging Kagami's leg.

"I found Kagami-kun!" Kuroko happily announced. He thought they were playing hide-and-seek.

"Te-Te-Te-Te-Tetsu-kun?!" Momoi spluttered still gawking at the teal head kid.

Kuroko looked up at the pink-haired lady who called him in another nickname. As he was raised with good manners he greeted her politely, "Hello."

Momoi felt a warmth feeling rushing through her and her heart start beating faster. She couldn't get a hold of herself and rushed to the innocent boy to give him a bone crushing hug. "Kyaa! So cute!" Momoi gushed. Everybody (except for Aomine, who is still frozen in shock) doesn't know whom to envious about, Kuroko whose face was buried in Momoi's ample chest, or Momoi who was hugging the adorable phantom to death.

Worried for Kuroko, Kagami tried to tell Momoi to let him go, "Don't hug him too tight! You're suffocating him!"

Momoi ignore him and just held the boy tighter. "Tetsu-kun!"

Meanwhile, Aomine who finally snap out of his shock, pointed at the teal head boy. "Who the hell is that?! Is that Tetsu?!"

Kise tried to placate him. "Relax Aominecchi. That really is Kurokocchi but there's a reason for this."

"How the hell did Tetsu turn into a kid?!"

"Uh…about that…" Kise tried to say, he looked at the Seirin team for help.

Riko explained, once again, about the candies Kiyoshi brought and its effect. Aomine couldn't believe it at first, but even he had to accept it when a living proof is right there in front of him. He watched little Kuroko who was being fought over.

Momoi grabbed Kuroko's left arm. "Tetsu-kun is mine!"

"He's not yours! And you're hurting him!" Kagami grasped Kuroko's right arm.

Kise waved his arms at both of them. "Give me Kurokocchi! I want to hug him!"

Meanwhile, little Kuroko was having hard time appeasing them, his Momoi nee-chan (she introduced herself while fawning over him) was pulling his left arm hard and Kagami-kun was pulling the other one. Even his Kise nii-chan joined in and tried to take him from both of them. He doesn't like to see them quarreling and his arms were starting to get hurt, too. So he did what an ordinary kid like him will do in this situation, he cried. "Waah!"

All of them jumped when they Kuroko started to cry and loudly at that. Momoi and Kagami immediately let go of his arms and asked him what's wrong and Kise tried to cheer him up. However, Kuroko only cried louder because they were talking at the same time and he couldn't understand what they were saying.

Aomine heave a sigh. "Oi, look what you three did? You made Tetsu cry."

The aforementioned three was indignant at Aomine's accusation and tried to defend themselves.

When Kuroko heard another unfamiliar voice, he stopped crying and stared up at the tanned teen that was ignoring the accused three people's excuses. Aomine felt that someone was watching him and looked down at little Kuroko. Their gazes interlocked for a while and none of them blinked. At the same time, Seirin and the other two visitors watched in bated breath at the staring contest between the ace and phantom of the Generation of Miracles. Each of them thought that Kuroko may have recognized Aomine considering he was Kuroko's best friend and former light when they were in Teikou.

This was not the case though, little Kuroko was fascinated at the tall tanned-skin teen in front of him for this is the first time he met one. He pointed at him and said the word in which he thought the teen was. "Ganguro."

They all froze at Kuroko's word.

…

…

Seirin along with Momoi tried to hide their giggles since they don't want to face the wrath of the ace of Touou Academy. While Kagami and Kise had no qualms about it and laughed their hearts out.

Kise was holding his stomach while laughing. "A-Aominecchi *laughs* ganguro *laughs*"

"HAHAHA! Even Kuroko knows you're a ganguro Aomine!" Kagami double up in laughter and patted Kuroko on the head for a job well done.

Aomine was so pissed and grabbed Kuroko's head hard. "You damn brat…" Aomine threateningly said, his dark blue eyes flashed.

'_Wait, is he on the zone?!_' everybody thought when they saw Aomine's eyes.

All of a sudden, Momoi kicked Aomine's back hard. Aomine abruptly let go of Kuroko's head and rubbed his aching back. "That hurt! What the hell was that for Satsuki?!" he whirled at his pink-haired childhood friend.

Momoi, with her hands on her hips, reprimanded him. "Dai-chan you idiot! You were hurting Tetsu-kun!"

"He said I was a ganguro!"

"Well, you are!"

"No, I am not!"

"Stop denying it," Kagami butted in at the bickering pair.

Aomine spun towards Kagami, "Stay out of this Bakagami!"

Kagami's vein popped and took a threatening step closer to Aomine. "What did you just say Ahoumine?!"

"I said mind your own business Bakagami!"

"If it concerns Kuroko, it is my business Ahoumine!"

"What are you talking about? You're not a good partner to Tetsu! You're light is too dim, you idiot!"

"Huh? Says the guy who left him! And we beaten you fair and square, you moron!"

"Basketball junkie!"

"Ganguro!"

Having enough of their stupid argument, Riko and Momoi whacked their respective aces upside the head.

"Ow!" both boys clutched their throbbing heads.

"Stop arguing! And don't say bad words in front of a kid," Riko scolded them.

"That's right. Both of you are being bad influences to the innocent Kurokocchi," Kise throw in. He was carrying Kuroko and rubbed his cheeks on top of his head. He got little Kuroko all to himself since everyone's attention was on the two squabbling aces.

"Please stop fighting."

Each and every one of them turned to Kuroko who spoke.

Kuroko was looking between Kagami and Aomine. "I don't like anyone fighting. Fighting is bad, okay Kagami-kun and…um…" he took a peek up at Aomine, silently asking for his name.

Aomine sighed. "It's Aomine. Aomine Daiki."

"Aomine nii-chan!" Kuroko beamed at him. Kuroko was so happy for he got to meet another nii-chan.

Aomine quickly averted his eyes from Kuroko's dazzling smile and struggled to fight an urge to blush. '_I didn't know Tetsu could be this cute!_'

Oblivious to the blue-haired inner turmoil, Kuroko held out his arms to Aomine. Aomine was confused at the kid's action and asked Kagami, "What does he want?"

"He wants to be carried by you," Kagami replied.

Aomine was hesitant, he's not really good at handling kids and they don't like him either because they think he's scary. On the other hand, Kuroko wasn't normal whether he's older or younger so he gave in to the teal-head's request and picked him up. "This is what you want, right?"

"Un!" Kuroko smiled at him before burying his face at the hollow of his neck.

Aomine look intently at the kid in his arms, also known as, his former shadow. He still couldn't believe that the cute little kid he was carrying was Kuroko. "Hey, he's going back to normal, right?"

"Yeah, we're going to ask the old lady who sold those candies to Kiyoshi on how to reverse the candy's effect," Hyuuga answered.

"You mean the candy shop near Kiyoshi-san's house?" Momoi inquired.

"As expected from the manager of the Generation of Miracles, that's exactly right," Kiyoshi affirmed.

"Yeah, we were just going to change and leave but then both of you showed up. Geez, all of you Generation of Miracles are like mushrooms popping out of nowhere," Kagami pointed out.

"Don't be like that Kagamicchi. It's just a coincidence," Kise justified.

"Coincidence? I don't think so. Who's next, Midorima?" Kagami guessed.

"I heard my name."

Everyone spun towards the owner's voice in astonishment.

"Midorima (Midorimacchi/Midorin)!"

* * *

… **Are a bunch of idiots.**

* * *

**Next Chapter: Lucky Items...**

**Notes: **

**GoriGori Kun Popsicle - **The blue soda-flavored popsicle the GOM ate together in middle school. The original snack is called "GariGari Kun Soda."


	4. Chapter 4: Lucky Items

**Title :** **Regression**

**By: revenanttrickster**

**Disclaimer: Kuroko no Basket is owned by Fujimaki Tadatoshi**

**A/N:** Thanks: **Kuroshiroryuu, LyricoJ, BrokenBlackCat, samijackson, NekoTama-1110, flowingshadows, KnB fan, Quetoa, Myadorabletetsuya, Crossroader32, newerher3, My Lunatic Crow, Xxdreamergirl95xX, KyGazer, miki565, Booklover2526, kikigirl4321, Shald120, Bekaaronketchum, Kurosaki Yukia, Anonymouse, aerean94, Kuro-Inazumi, Anglo-Chan, Guest, AnimeAngelChick, minerbbi **for the reviews! And for those who favorite and follow this story, thank you so much! It's now 100+! XD. Anyway, please enjoy reading this chapter, too!

* * *

**Chapter 4: Lucky Items…**

* * *

"Midorima (Midorimacchi/Midorin)!" everyone exclaimed in surprise.

Standing there was Midorima Shintarou, ace and shooting guard of Shuutoku High School basketball club. He was wearing his school uniform, his left hand, taped in bandages, was holding two chocolate bars and the other one was holding his bag.

Pointing at the green-haired boy, Kagami demanded, "What are you doing here Midorima?"

Midorima pushed his glasses at the bridge of his nose. "I'm here to return the book Kuroko lend me last week," he said. "As well as to give Kuroko his lucky item for the day which is a chocolate bar since according to Oha-Asa, Aquarius' rank is in last place. By the way, Cancer's lucky item is also a chocolate bar."

'_You're too late! And we didn't ask what your lucky item is!_' everyone thought.

Kise spotted that something or rather someone was missing. "Um, Midorimacchi, you're alone?" he asked.

"If you're asking for Takao, he's not here. His mother asked him to come home early so he couldn't go with me," Midorima clarified.

He regarded all of them. "Now that I've answered all your questions, let me ask. Who is that kid?" He pointed at the kid, who was still being carried by Aomine.

Everyone was inwardly panicking and trying to think up an excuse, aside from Aomine who had no problem about it. And he bluntly told Midorima, "Huh? What are you talking about? It's Tetsu."

They turned to Aomine in outrage. '_Ahoumine!_' all of them angrily thought.

Aomine noticed that everyone was glaring at him and snorted. "What? You think Midorima will accept one of your pathetic excuses? He'll know that this is Tetsu anyway, so why bother?"

"I hate to say this but Aomine is right," Midorima half-heartedly agreed.

Aomine scowled at him for that but didn't say anything else.

Midorima intently eyed little Kuroko and Kuroko stared right back. "How did Kuroko turn into a kid?"

Riko had enough of hearing that question and she was starting to get annoyed at the members of the Generation of Miracles who keep dropping out of nowhere. And also she was starting to get tired of explaining Kuroko's transformation over and over again. So she shouted at her team, "Ugh! I'm tired of explaining this! Somebody switch with me!"

The Seirin basketball club members tried to calm down their coach. They don't want to pressure her out because if she was stressed, it means a hellish practice for all of them. Hyuuga, being the captain, volunteered and explain the circumstances to the green-haired ace.

"I see. I guess I was too late," Midorima said after hearing what happened.

Momoi recalled what Midorima said earlier and asked him, "Hey Midorin, you said that Tetsu-kun's lucky item today is a chocolate bar, right?"

"That's right."

She turned to Kiyoshi who was beside her and asked, "And the candy that Tetsu-kun ate was vanilla-flavored, right?"

Kiyoshi nodded. "Yes, it was vanilla."

"Then, what if we let Tetsu-kun eat the chocolate bar that Midorin brought? It might cancel the candy's effect," Momoi suggested to them.

Kagami crossed his arms against his chest. "Just because they have the opposite flavors doesn't mean that it will work."

"But it might work," Koganei argued back. "We won't know unless we try."

"He's right," the others agreed and approved Momoi's plan.

Aomine eyed the chocolate bar Midorima was holding suspiciously. "Midorima that's a normal chocolate bar, right?"

Midorima was incensed. "Of course! I'm not like Kiyoshi. I don't buy things that are bizarre."

Everyone sweat dropped. '_Says the guy who always brings weird stuff with him._'

Kise raised his hand up in excitement. "Okay, I'll feed Kurokocchi~!" He quickly took the chocolate bar from Midorima's hand.

"Hey!"

Momoi moped. "That's not fair Ki-chan! I want to feed Tetsu-kun! And it was my idea!"

Kise paid no attention to his former manager and peeled the cover of the chocolate bar and held it for Kuroko to eat. "Here Kurokocchi, say ah~"

Kuroko did as he was told, opened his mouth and took a bite out of the bar. They all waited for a few minutes and noted that nothing was happening. After Kuroko swallowed the chocolate he ate, they waited for few more moments until they gave up since nothing was taking place.

"Nothing's happening," Furihata stated the obvious.

"Maybe we should let Kuroko eat the whole bar," Izuki presumed.

"Oi Kise! Make him eat the whole bar," Kagami ordered the ace of Kaijou basketball team.

Kise was reluctant though and tried to reason. "Can he even finish it? Kurokocchi always had a weak appetite, you know. Especially now, that he turned into a kid."

"Just do it!" Riko impatiently commanded.

Kise had no choice, did as he was instructed and fed more chocolate to Kuroko. Kuroko ate half of the chocolate bar before announcing that he was full. Everybody tried to make him eat more but Kuroko was adamant about it. As he was still carrying the teal-head kid, Aomine took a few steps backward for they were crowding around Kuroko which also means they were swarming around him, too. He glowered at all of them. "Stop it. Can't you see he doesn't want more?"

Everyone glanced at the little Kuroko who was close to tears. They immediately backed off and tried to mollify him.

"We're sorry Kuro-chan. Please forgive us," Riko pleaded to Kuroko in part of everyone.

'_Kuro-chan?_' everyone inwardly asked at the nickname.

Kuroko nodded and accepted her apology.

Momoi sighed in disappointment. "I thought I got it right."

"Told you it wouldn't work," Kagami said.

"It's okay Momoi," Midorima said while rummaging through his bag. "What you suggested gave me some ideas." He took out something and proudly showed it to everyone.

"A toy car?" Fukuda asked as they peeked at the toy in Midorima's hand.

Midorima pushed his glasses on top of his nose. "Hmph! It's not just an ordinary toy car, it's a GM Cadillac 62 El Dorado*. It's a rare item also it is said that it gives good fortune particularly to kids."

"So what if it's rare, it's still just a toy car," Kagami said and gave Midorima a flat look.

Midorima shook his head at Kagami in pity. "You really don't know anything."

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?!"

Midorima ignored Seirin's ace and turned to his former teammate. "Aomine put Kuroko down and let him play with this."

Aomine did as he was told and Midorima held the toy car in front of Kuroko to play with. Kuroko only stared at it before looking up at Midorima.

"Aren't you going to play?" Midorima asked the little phantom.

"But I don't like toy cars," Kuroko retorted.

Kagami smirked at Midorima. "Well, it looks like he doesn't like your _rare_ toy car."

Midorima was infuriated at Kagami's remark. "I'm not done yet. I still have more." He searched in his bag again and procured… a yellow rubber ducky. "According to Oha-Asa, aside from the chocolate bar, a yellow rubber ducky is also Aquarius' lucky item for the day," Midorima explained.

Everyone looked at the rubber ducky and then at Midorima in sympathy.

"What?"

"Midorimacchi just how many lucky items do you always have with you?" Kise asked the green-haired teen. _And how can you carry something embarrassing so proudly._

Midorima looked flustered. "None of your business!" He knelt down in front of Kuroko and gave him his lucky item. Kuroko ogled at the rubber ducky in his hands before squeezing it. The toy gave out a sound and Kuroko studied it before returning it to Midorima.

Midorima was confused at the teal head's action. "Don't you like it?"

"Okaa-sama said that I shouldn't play with a rubber ducky anymore because I'm a big boy now," Kuroko explained to the puzzled green-haired teen.

"He's right Midorima," Aomine teased the former vice-captain of the Generation of Miracles. "Big boys shouldn't play with a rubber ducky anymore."

"Shut up Ahoumine!"

"Don't call me that!"

Midorima riffled through his bag again. "If he doesn't like the others then I have something that he will like and I know that it will work. This lucky item already helped me a lot of times." He took something out of his bag and shoved it at Kuroko's face. "Here! A rare glass figurine of Kerosuke! Even Oha-Asa said that this is the best lucky item," Midorima proudly said.

Kuroko was so startled when Midorima shoved the figurine at his face, that he slapped it away in surprise. The sound of the glass figurine breaking echoed throughout the whole gym. None of them didn't dare move and just watched Midorima who was staring blankly at the broken figurine.

Kuroko knows that he did something wrong when he noticed the devastated face of the green-haired teen in front of him, so he searched something from his pocket to give to the teen as an apology. He took it out and gave it to Midorima. "I'm sorry onii-chan if I broke your toy. It was an accident. I didn't mean to," Kuroko apologized. "I know it's not the same but you can have this instead." What was on Kuroko's hand was a miniature Kerosuke.

Midorima was surprised at Kuroko's apology and at the toy in his hand. "Th-This is…" he tried to say.

Momoi gasped when she saw the toy on Kuroko's hand. "That's a mini Kerosuke! That's a really rare item much more uncommon than the Kerosuke glass figurine. There are only five of them throughout Japan," she explained.

Everyone was shocked when they heard the pink-haired manager's explanation. And they wondered how Kuroko got a hold of such a special item.

Little Kuroko tried to catch the green-haired teen's attention. "Onii-chan?"

"It's Midorima," he introduced himself. "My name is Midorima Shintarou. And thank you for this." He took the mini Kerosuke out of Kuroko's hand.

Kuroko smiled a bright smile at him. "You're welcome Midorima nii-chan. I'm glad you like it."

Everyone was on a daze when they saw that brilliant smile on Kuroko's cute face and his aura was radiating so much happiness that they almost forgot to breath.

After a few minutes of basking in Kuroko's cute pheromones, Izuki glanced at the shattered glasses of the figurine on the floor. "We should clean this up or someone will get hurt."

"We'll do it!" Kawahara and Fukuda volunteered and went to get some cleaning supplies.

Midorima, who was still crouching down in front of the teal head boy, asked the Seirin team, "So how do you turn Kuroko back to normal?"

Everyone in Seirin paused when they heard that dreaded question. Their (unwanted) visitors were confused when they didn't answer right away.

Kagami angrily pointed at Midorima. "Stop asking that question! Every time one of you Generation of Miracles asks that, another one shows up! Don't tell me Murasakibara or even Akashi will show up next!"

The present members of the Generation of Miracles (excluding Kuroko, of course) shivered in fear when they heard their former captain's name.

"Idiot! Don't jinx us!" Aomine shouted at Kagami.

Even Kise paled. "A-Aominecchi is right. If Akashicchi finds out about this…" Kise couldn't finish and just gulped.

Everyone in Seirin team also blanched when they saw their scared expressions. How can the undefeatable and feared Generation of Miracles be afraid of their captain? '_Just what will that Akashi do?!_' everyone thought in fear.

"Just what will Akashi do to Kuroko?!" Kagami voiced out their thoughts.

"Calm down Kagamin," Momoi tried to placate him. "Akashi-kun wouldn't hurt Tetsu-kun. It's just that…" she tried to explain but failed when even she doesn't know what Akashi might do.

"If Akashicchi saw Kurokocchi like this, he might kidnap him!" Kise blurted out.

"Don't be stupid Kise. Akashi wouldn't do that," Midorima said. "Probably…"

"Even you aren't sure!" Kagami, Kise and Aomine shouted at him.

Then, everyone froze in fear when they heard the gym doors ominously opened. All of them gulped and slowly turned around to find out who it was.

* * *

… **Or maybe unlucky items.**

* * *

**Next Chapter: The Antidote is...**

**Notes:**

***GM Cadillac 62 El Dorado - **This toy car is real but as for it being rare, that is something I'm not sure of. And the _it-gives-fortune-to-kids _bit is just something I made up.

**Glass figurine/Mini Kerosuke - **Same as above, this is just something I made up.

**A/N: **The next chapter's title may be a bit misleading but it won't be the last chapter. I still have a lot of ideas for this fic. :P


	5. Chapter 5: The Antidote is

**Title :** **Regression**

**By: revenanttrickster**

**Disclaimer: Kuroko no Basket is owned by Fujimaki Tadatoshi**

**A/N:** I am so sorry for the late update! *bows repeatedly* Anyway, thanks: **Booklover2526, flowingshadows, Kuroshiroryuu, kurie-tibiti, Kuro-Maggie, luchiaseiren, newerher3, Faliara, Crossroader32, AnimeAngelChick, Erika Karisawa's New Sidekick, BrokenBlackCat, kikigirl4321, NekoTama-1110, My Lunatic Crow, BloodyZombie, rinrinlen12, XxDeadSkiesxX, Kuro-Inazumi, Honeydee, Guest 1, xXoAnonymousoXx, Guest 2, Icchan, pollo **for those reviews! I'm sorry for not replying but always know that I read and appreciate your reviews. They motivate me :D. And for those who favorite and follow this story, thank you, too! Anyway, enjoy this chapter as well!

* * *

**Chapter 5: The Antidote is…**

* * *

Everyone slowly turned around to find out who their new arrival was, only to relieve a sigh when they saw Murasakibara Atsushi, the tall center of the Generation of Miracles and Yosen High School basketball club. He was dressed in his school uniform, munching a cream stew flavored Maiubo on his right hand while the other one carries a shopping bag full of snacks.

"Mukkun!" Momoi greeted the purple haired giant.

"Ah, Sa-chin you're here~. Kise-chin, Mine-chin and Mido-chin are here, too~"

"What are you doing here Murasakicchi?" Kise asked his former teammate. "Akita is far from here."

"Hmm~ I'm here to pick up Kuro-chin. He said he'll show me a cheap store that sells the best pastries," Murasakibara lazily answered.

"Kuroko did? I didn't know he likes to eat sweet stuff," Kiyoshi mentioned.

Murasakibara glanced at the center of Seirin basketball team. "Kuro-chin only likes vanilla flavored desserts but he always recommends me a store or shop that sells the best snacks ever since we were in middle school." After explaining, he looked around the whole gym for the passing specialist. "Speaking of Kuro-chin, where is he?" the purple haired center asked.

"Um, Mukkun don't be surprised but something happened to Tetsu-kun," Momoi said.

Murasakibara tilted his head at his former manager. "What happened to Kuro-chin?"

Aomine answered his question straight-forwardly. "Tetsu turned into a kid by eating a vanilla candy brought by one of them." He jerked his thumb at the Seirin team.

"Don't say it like it's our fault!" said Kagami as he tried to deny the blue haired ace's accusation.

"What? It _is_ your team's fault, you know."

"Hmm~ a vanilla candy that can turn you into a kid. Does that mean I'll turn into a kid, too?" Murasakibara wondered.

"Of course not Murasakicchi! What Kurokocchi ate was a special candy," Kise explained.

"Oh…" Murasakibara was relieved that he won't turn into a kid; he liked being tall, after all he can crush his opponents easily that way. "Then, where's Kuro-chin? I want to see Kuro-chin as a kid."

"He's here," said Midorima as he took a step back so that his former purple haired teammate could see the little teal head boy.

Murasakibara walked towards his former teammate who was reverted into a kid. Kuroko looked up, up at the tall teen in front of him. He was enthralled and a bit scared at the purple haired teen since he was taller than all of his nii-chan.

"You're so big onii-chan!" Kuroko brightly exclaimed.

Murasakibara ruffled little Kuroko's hair, just like he always does whenever he sees his former teammate, much to the sixteen year old phantom's chagrin. "And Kuro-chin is so tiny~"

"What's your name onii-chan?" little Kuroko asked.

"Hmm~ doesn't Kuro-chin remember me?"

Midorima answered his former teammate's question. "The candy's side effect not only changed his physical appearance but it also mentally revert Kuroko to his five year old self. As a result, he doesn't remember any of us."

Understanding the green head's explanation, he introduced himself to the little phantom. "My name is Murasakibara Atsushi. Nice to meet you Kuro-chin~"

"Nice to meet you, too, um, Mura… Murasaki…" Kuroko tried to say the purple head's name but he couldn't pronounce it because it was too long, so he shortened it instead. "Murasaki nii-chan!"

"Murasaki?" the purple haired center asked.

"Un!" Kuroko nodded and pointed at Murasakibara's hair. "Because your hair color is also violet!"

"Just like Midorima nii-chan, too!" he pointed at Midorima. "Green!"

Then he pointed at Momoi. "Pink!"

And then at Kise. "Yellow!"

And finally at Aomine. "Blue!"

"All of you have the same hair color as your name!" Kuroko excitedly declared, waving his hands in amazement.

Kagami crossed his arms and thought deeply. "Now that I think about it, they do have the same hair color as their name."

Everyone looked at him in disbelief.

Sensing everyone's attention on him, he exclaimed, "What?!"

"You only just noticed?" Hyuuga asked his oblivious underclass man.

"And this, coming from someone who always says that he will defeat the Generation of Miracles," Izuki added.

"You really are Bakagami," everyone said in unison.

"Leave me alone!" Kagami shouted in exasperation.

"But why does the Generation of Miracles have the same hair color as their name?" Kiyoshi asked the aforementioned group.

"Please don't ask questions that we can't answer. And it's not like we planned this or anything," Kise replied.

"You could be the color rangers!" Koganei enthusiastically announced his idea.

Aomine snorted at that. "Not like we haven't heard that before. And besides, Tetsu is an exception since he doesn't have black hair just like his name."

"Well, of course. Kuroko is far more normal considering all of your strange habits," Kagami retorted.

"Huh? What's that supposed to mean?!"

"Now, now you two. Don't fight," Kise tried to calm the two hot-headed and Kuroko's former and current light down. "Kurokocchi wouldn't like it if you two start fighting."

The two aces stopped their glaring contest when they heard that, and looked at little Kuroko who was playing with Murasakibara.

"Murasaki nii-chan what's in your bag?" asked Kuroko, pointing at the bag the purple haired was carrying.

"Hmm~ this? Its snacks," said Murasakibara as he showed its contents one by one to the teal head kid. "Dolsot Bibimbap and Squid Ink Pasta flavored Maiubo, potato chips, chocolate flavored pocky, strawberry filling Choco balls, some KitKat, Meiji chocolate bars, Jagariko, Pucca and vanilla candies."

"That's a lot!"

"Does Kuro-chin want some vanilla candies? It might turn you back to normal," Murasakibara said as he gave Kuroko a vanilla candy.

Little Kuroko took the offered candy and thanked his purple haired nii-chan. "But what does Murasaki nii-chan mean when he said I'll go back to normal?" he asked while tilting his head at the purple head in confusion.

Murasakibara opened his mouth to answer when Midorima interrupted him. "Wait, Murasakibara! What are you doing?"

Murasakibara turned to the green head. "Won't Kuro-chin return to normal if he eats another vanilla candy?"

Hyuuga shook his head. "We already tried that when we made him ate the chocolate bar which was Midorima's lucky item and it didn't work."

"That was chocolate and this is vanilla. Vanilla is very different from chocolate so don't compare them. Not only that, but this vanilla candy is considered a special candy. This vanilla candy melts in your mouth when you eat it, the flavor bursting through like a river flowing through the ocean. Its sweet taste can make you feel like you're flying through the heavens and will make you want more. They said that once you eat this vanilla candy, it can change a person so Kuro-chin might return to normal if he eats this," Murasakibara vehemently explained the candy's prowess to everyone's surprise.

Kise, spotting the Seirin team's dumbfounded reaction, enlightened them, "Murasakicchi can be really passionate when it comes to snacks. Actually, you could say that he has more passion when it comes to snacks than basketball."

Kagami couldn't believe it. "Seriously?"

Murasakibara noticed that Kuroko isn't going to eat the candy and tried to put it in his pocket. "Hmm~ aren't you going to eat it Kuro-chin?"

"But I just ate half of Midorima nii-chan's chocolate. Okaa-sama said that eating too many snacks is bad for your health."

"It's fine. It's just one candy," Murasakibara persuaded the little teal head boy.

Little Kuroko looked up at his Riko nee-chan for permission. When Riko nodded her consent, Kuroko ate the vanilla candy which he found was very delicious. "It's delicious Murasaki nii-chan!"

The purple haired center player nodded at his praise, smiled and ruffled Kuroko's hair again. Everyone was waiting if the vanilla candy has any effect to the teal head phantom, but just like last time, everyone was disappointed since nothing seems to be happening.

"You're special vanilla candy didn't work Murasakibara," Kagami stated.

"But Kuro-chin said it was delicious~"

"That's not the point!"

Just like what he did to his other nii-chan, little Kuroko held out his arms to Murasakibara, silently asking to be carried. Noticing what the little phantom want, the purple haired teen picked him up and placed him on his shoulders. "Do you like it Kuro-chin~?"

"Un!" Kuroko nodded eagerly. "Let's go around Murasaki nii-chan!"

"Okay~" said Murasakibara as he walked around the whole gym with little Kuroko on his shoulders.

The little teal head boy was having fun playing with his new tall purple head nii-chan, he was happy since this was the first time to be carried so high and see a new different perspective than usual. He was always the shortest out of all the kids in his school and there were even girls that are taller than him. Not to mention, his weak presence didn't help at all, he was always forgotten by his teachers and his classmates, which was also the reason why he doesn't have any close friends. That's why he was so confused that all of his nii-chan and nee-chan that he just befriended were so nice to him, they even said that he was cute, which was the first time anyone said that to him (his parents and grandmother didn't count). They never forgot about him, it's like he doesn't have a weak presence, more like the opposite, they were clamoring to him. He like that feeling; being the center of attention for once. They may not be the same age as him but he like them already; he was at ease with them, which was a first for him as he isn't comfortable with strangers that easily. They may be a bit odd but it felt like he knew them already which he found weird but he likes it; he really likes all of his nii-chan and nee-chan.

After playing around the Seirin High's gym, the purple haired center of Yosen High put down the kid version of the phantom sixth player of the Generation of Miracles. "Did you had fun Kuro-chin~?" Murasakibara asked.

Little Kuroko nodded. "Un! Thank you Murasaki nii-chan."

Since the tall center player was tired, he started eating the snacks he brought and tried to offer more candy to Kuroko but he shook his head in refusal. The purple haired teen just shrugged and started munching some potato chips happily, oblivious to his surroundings. Suddenly, the teal head boy felt tired and drowsy, rubbed his eyes and yawned cutely.

Kagami noticed his tired expression and picked him up. "Are you sleepy?" Kuroko slowly nodded and buried his face at the dark red head's shoulder. Kagami rubbed his back soothingly, little Kuroko sighed in contentment and immediately fell asleep after that.

Kise cooed at the cute sleeping teal head boy. "Kurokocchi must have tired himself with playing."

"Well, who wouldn't," Midorima said. "Being reverted to a kid even if he doesn't know it and meeting a lot of people he doesn't know, it's too much for a kid to handle. Actually, I'm surprise he lasted this long."

Riko thought that Kuroko sleeping was a good opportunity and ordered her team. "This is a good time. Everyone changed into your uniform quickly. We're leaving."

The Seirin team was going to ask why but seeing the murderous aura their coach was emitting, they hurriedly did as they were told and went to their locker room.

"We're leaving already?" Momoi asked.

Riko nodded. "All of you Generation of Miracles are here except for Akashi. We have to leave before he gets here."

"Um, coach?" Kagami interrupted. "What about me? I can't change while carrying Kuroko."

"I could carry him!" Kise volunteered.

Aomine gave the blond copycat a flat look. "What are you talking about? It should be me, I was his light."

"That has nothing to do with this!"

Riko glared at the two aces. "Both of you shut up. You'll wake Kuroko up." She turned to the dark red head power forward. "Kagami, you don't have to change. You haven't had your warm-up yet and you weren't sweating like the others so it's fine."

Kagami nodded in obedience when he saw his coach pacing impatiently.

The rest of the Seirin basketball team came back, all wearing their school uniform, and panting as if they ran a marathon.

"That was fast," said Kise, marveling at their speed.

Koganei tried to catch his breath before replying, "We have no choice. Either we hurry up changing or experience coach's hellish training menu if we were late."

Riko put her hands on her hips. "Since everyone is ready, we're leaving. Akashi might show up if we stay here any longer."

"Aka-chin?" Murasakibara, who already ate all of his potato chips and was now eating chocolate flavored pocky, asked.

Hearing what the purple head had said, Aomine asked, "Do you know something Murasakibara?"

The center of the Generation of Miracles nodded. "Aka-chin told me to wait here with Kuro-chin. He said that he wants to talk to him about something."

"Wait, you mean to tell me that Akashi is coming here?" Kagami demanded.

The purple haired center of Yosen nodded.

"Now?"

Murasakibara once again nodded in reply.

Riko started to panic. "Then what are we waiting for? We have to leave now!"

Murasakibara shook his head at Seirin's coach. "We can't."

"And pray tell me, why not?"

"Because Aka-chin said so."

"That's not a good enough reason!" Riko protested at Murasakibara's ridiculous excuse.

Midorima pushed his glasses at the bridge of his nose. "Murasakibara is right," he said. "If Akashi ordered us to stay here, we have to do it."

Kagami narrowed his eyes at the present members of the Generation of Miracles. "You know, I noticed that all of you always listen to what Akashi says," he said. "Just like when the Winter Cup began, he summoned the Generation of Miracles and all of you showed up willingly without questions. Why do you have to listen to him anyway? He isn't your captain anymore."

A tense atmosphere surrounded the Generation of Miracles and the Seirin team momentarily paused at the sudden change of mood.

"It's none of your business Kagami," Aomine firmly said.

Everyone was on the edge and although Seirin were a bit curious when they saw the serious expression of their former rivals, they didn't dare ask any questions.

"What's going on? Everyone look so serious."

Everyone whirled towards the gym doors when they heard someone spoke, their eyes widen in surprise and shivered in fear when they saw who it was. Because standing there was the feared captain of the Generation of Miracles and Rakuzan High School, Akashi Seijuurou.

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… **Not another vanilla candy.**

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**Next Chapter: The Red Knows...**

**Notes: **

**Maiubo - **Refers to the long corn snack Murasakibara often has in his mouth. The original snack is called "Umaibo". I also included Murasakibara's top 3 favorite flavors, according to Vol. 23's Q&A, which was (1) Cream Stew, (2) Dolsot Bibimbap and (3) Squid Ink Pasta.

**Jagariko - **Cheese and vegetable flavored potato sticks. Jagariko is a play on the word "Jagarimo" which means potato.

**Pucca - **Not the cartoons but crackers with a chocolate filling shaped like fish.

**A/N:** As a thank you for all those reviews (as well as for understanding that I'm a lazy author), I decided to treat you, my dear readers, for a surprise. You'll find out when I hit my 100 review mark. Look forward to it! :D


	6. Chapter 6: The Red Knows

**Title :** **Regression**

**By: revenanttrickster**

**Disclaimer: Kuroko no Basket is owned by Fujimaki Tadatoshi**

**A/N:** Hello everyone! Waiting for the next chapter? Well here it is! My surprise :D The long awaited Akashi chapter! Thanks: **samijackson, BrokenBlackCat, LovelyAria, xXoAnonymousoXx, sHirou, miki565, KurokocchiTetsuya, Crossroader32, Heaven0Leigh, XxDeadSkiesxX, AnimeAngelChick, Booklover2526, Taku Yonomichi, x10TIMEx, kikigirl4321, Ciel D'or Serendipite, gypsydancer529, DeathEmpress23 **for the reviews. Enjoy!

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**Chapter 6: The Red Knows…**

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"It seems everyone is here," said Akashi Seijuurou, captain of the Generation of Miracles and currently Rakuzan High School basketball club, while looking at the Seirin team and his former teammates in Teikou. He was wearing his school uniform and his right hand was holding his bag while the other one was in his pocket.

"Aka-chin~" the purple haired center greeted his former captain and looks like the only one out of them who was happy to see him.

"Atsushi," Akashi greeted back and eyed the former members of Teikou basketball team. "It looks like all of Tetsuya's former teammates are here. What a coincidence," said Akashi although the way he said it seems like it wasn't a coincidence at all. He walked towards the group. "It's been a long while since I've seen everyone together."

"What are you doing here Akashi?" the green haired shooting guard asked.

Akashi turned to his former vice captain. "The same reason as everyone else, I'm here to see Tetsuya. We have something to talk about."

"Like what?" it was Aomine's turn to ask.

The red head glanced at the ace of the Generation of Miracles. "That's between me and Tetsuya, Daiki." He stared at all of them and his eyes settled on the coach of Seirin basketball club. "Aida-san, may I know where Tetsuya is?" he asked. "And I'm afraid I have to take him away from your practice. Though it looks like you're done with your practice," he said when he noticed the Seirin team was wearing their school uniform.

Riko started to sweat. "Um, about that…Kuroko-kun is…"

"What happened to Tetsuya?" Akashi asked while looking intently at Riko.

"Th-That is…Kuroko-kun…" the brunette tried to say but couldn't form any coherent thought when the red head's heterochromatic eyes pierce through her soul.

When Akashi realized that he won't get any answer from the young coach, he turned to his former pink haired manager. "Momoi, where is Tetsuya?"

Momoi was startled when the red haired captain called her name. "Akashi-kun, um, about Tetsu-kun…" she tried to explain but couldn't do it so she had no choice but to use her trump card. She pushed her blue haired childhood friend forward in front of the captain of Rakuzan basketball team.

The blue haired teen was shock when his childhood friend pushed him abruptly, after regaining his balance, Aomine whirled to his manager. "What the hell? Satsuki!"

The pink haired clasped her hands together and closed her eyes as if praying (in a way, she was). '_I'm sorry Dai-chan!_'

'_May you rest in peace Aomine (Aominecchi/Mine-chin)_,' everyone prayed for the blue haired soul silently.

Aomine doesn't know how or why but he could sense what everyone was thinking. He started to open his mouth to lash out his anger at them but stopped when he heard his name being called by the red head.

"Daiki," called Akashi, he was starting to lose his patience because no one was answering his question and he hates it when he doesn't know what's happening.

The blue haired ace of Touou Academy slowly turned around to face his former captain. He started to sweat in bullets when he saw the red head was losing his patience. He may be brash, arrogant and most of the time doesn't care what anyone says about him but if there was a person (aside from his mother and at times Momoi) that can make him obedient and scared, it was Akashi Seijuurou, though he won't admit it out loud. And he almost forgot Kuroko, he may be most of the time apathetic and emotionless—except when playing basketball—but when he got mad (and this rarely happened), he's much more scarier than Akashi. He should know, he had a taste of it once and he swore he won't make the same mistake again. He also found out that the only thing that could calm the phantom sixth player down was vanilla milkshake (GoriGori-kun soda can be used as a substitute as well, which they found out when Kise made the shadow angry). But that's another story.

"Daiki," Akashi threateningly called the blue haired attention back from his thoughts.

Aomine gulped nervously when he heard his former captain's _tell-me-now-or-I'll-kill-you_ tone. He sighed in defeat. "Akashi…You might not believe me but Tetsu…Tetsu turned into a…kid," he finished lamely. "And he, uh, apparently doesn't remember any of us."

"…I see," was what the red haired captain only said.

All of them didn't know how to react to that. Akashi looked so calm about the situation; he wasn't even a bit surprised at the impossibility of it. Either he was good at hiding his emotions or nothing could ever surprise him.

The red head's eyes wandered, looking for the phantom player that turned into a kid. "I'm going to ask again and I expect one of you to answer. Where is Tetsuya?"

"H-He is, um, with Kagami," the point guard of Seirin stuttered in reply.

The power forward of Seirin jumped in surprise when he heard his name, he had his back turned so that the captain of Rakuzan wouldn't see the teal head boy he was carrying (who was currently sleeping quietly), and he turned around to face the red head, who immediately settled his eyes on little Kuroko.

Akashi was eyeing the cute sleeping teal head kid. He had to admit, he looked just like the passing specialist of Teikou only a kid version of him. "How did Tetsuya become a kid?" he asked still watching the boy.

As it was his fault, the center of Seirin answered him. "I bought vanilla candies that the shop keeper told me that it was special and that it can turn a person into a kid. Kuroko accidentally ate one of those candies and this was the result."

After hearing his explanation, the red head glanced at Kiyoshi for a moment before taking out his cellphone from his bag and started dialing. Everyone was curious on who Akashi was trying to call. Unfortunately, they only heard him say vanilla candy and the address of the candy shop near Kiyoshi's house, much to their dismay. Though they were wondering how Akashi knows the address of the candy shop but none of them dared to ask him.

Being the usual nosy that he was, Kise couldn't help but ask, "Akashicchi who did you call?"

"No one," Akashi vaguely replied and pocketed his phone. He, once again, stared at the kid version of the phantom player of the Generation of Miracles. "How long has he been asleep?"

Kagami felt that the red head was specifically asking him, so he answered, "Not for long. He fell asleep for a few minutes before you came in."

"He was tired after playing with me~" the purple haired center happily reported.

"Good job Atsushi."

"Hmm~" Murasakibara hummed at the red head's praise and returned to eating his snacks.

The captain of Rakuzan team started to say something, only to be interrupted by Kagami's voice.

"Kuroko?" the dark red haired power forward asked when he felt little Kuroko shift in his arms.

The teal head boy clutched Kagami's shirt before slowly opening his eyes, blinking the sleepiness away. Kuroko didn't know why (he only just fell asleep and he was still tired) but something was telling him to wake up and so he did. When he opened his eyes, he looked at Kagami (who was silently asking him what's wrong) before his eyes drifted to everyone and finally noticing the red haired stranger, which for some reason, felt familiar to him. Little Kuroko kept staring at the red haired teen and Akashi stared right back.

Everyone's eyes were glued at the staring contest between the phantom and emperor of the Generation of Miracles. They silently gasped in astonishment when little Kuroko held out his tiny arms to Akashi. They were torn between worrying for the teal head's safety and their fear of the so called emperor.

The ace of Seirin tried to hold back the teal head kid in his arms but Kuroko, much like his older self, was stubborn and tried to reach the red head futilely. Little Kuroko was starting to get antsy and whimpered, "A-Aka…Aka…"

All of them froze when they heard what Kuroko just said. They were speculating if the teal head remembered the Rakuzan captain or he only just said that because of Akashi's hair color.

Akashi noticed that the teal head boy was close to tears and took a few steps towards him. "Just give me Tetsuya, Kagami-kun or he might start crying."

Kagami also noticed Kuroko's expression and has no choice but to acquiesce to the teal head boy's request and hand him over to the red haired captain.

Once he was in the red head's arms, little Kuroko finally settled down and goes back to staring at the teen. He was mesmerized at the heterochromatic eyes that were gazing at him; he never met anyone which has a different eye color in each eye like him before. The teal head boy put his left hand at the red head's face. "Aka…shi…(1)"

Everyone in Seirin team gulped anxiously at Kuroko's action, they were amazed at his brazenness to the feared former captain of Teikou, who knows what the red head might do to their passing specialist. Whereas the members of the Generation of Miracles weren't a bit worried since they know that Akashi will take care of Kuroko just like how he always take care of them when they were in middle school (though at times he could be scary). They also knew that their emperor captain always treats the phantom sixth man special. After all, he did discover Kuroko's ability of misdirection.

"That's right Tetsuya," the red head said. "That's my name."

Little Kuroko cutely tilted his head at that. "Your name?"

The corner of the red head's lip lifted slightly. "My full name is Akashi Seijuurou. You can call me by my first name, Tetsuya."

"Un!" the teal head boy was ecstatic and nodded his eagerly. "Then, can I call you Sei-nii?"

The red haired captain couldn't help it and smiled at little Kuroko. "Yes, you may," he affirmed and ruffled the phantom's hair.

The teal head boy giggled and nuzzled closer to the red head.

Watching the moment between his mentor and former captain, Kise was jealous that little Kuroko like Akashi more than him. "That's not fair Akashicchi! I want Kurokocchi to call me by my first name, too!" he complained. "Like calling me Ryouta nii-chan or Ryou nii-chan or even nii-tama! Being called by little Kurokocchi so cutely like that~" Kise tried to imagined and was lost in his own thoughts, oblivious to how everyone gave him weird looks.

Kagami gave the blond ace a flat look. "That's the reason why Kuroko called you a pervert, Kise."

"Stop calling me that, Kagamicchi!" Kise wailed in protest.

All of them ignored the blond copycat's annoying whines.

On the other hand, Aomine took a step closer to the ace of Seirin and whispered, "Oi, Kagami is it true? Tetsu called Kise a pervert?"

Kagami nodded. "Yeah, it took a while before Kuroko let Kise near him. Actually, he's the only one out of you Generation of Miracles that he didn't like at first. Even Midorima had a better luck than him."

Aomine found a new respect to his former shadow. "Even as a kid, Tetsu is smart." _And Kise what you're getting is called karma. You shouldn't have insulted Tetsu when you first met him in middle school._

Kagami agreed with the blue haired. "I know."

Meanwhile, the red haired captain and the kid version of the phantom player were lost in their own world (they tuned out Kise when he opened his mouth). Out of all the visitors that kept coming in the gym, it seems like Akashi was the only one little Kuroko felt comfortable with. The teal head boy doesn't really know why but he felt safe and protected in his arms, like nothing bad is ever going to happen to him if he was near the red head. He snuggled closer to his Sei-nii, wrapped his arms around his neck and burrowed his face at the hollow of the red head's neck.

Akashi let out a tiny smile; he was feeling a sense of contentment and satisfaction of seeing the cute expressions little Kuroko was making. He knows that Kuroko isn't the type to cuddle or show affections through touches, he was always blunt and honest. That's why he was a bit stunned at the teal head boy in his arms right now since he was the opposite of the Kuroko he knew. He also felt smug that little Kuroko likes him out of everyone else even Aomine, his former light. Though he knows that he's competing with Kagami in being the little phantom's favorite person. He decided to do something about that as soon as possible.

Everyone paused when they saw the unbeatable captain of the Generation of Miracles smile. This was the first time they saw (except for the Generation of Miracles themselves) the red head smile. They don't know what to say or how to react; they were terrified to interrupt the moment between the little phantom and the emperor.

Of course, the red haired captain knows that everyone was watching him, they were lucky that his cellphone began ringing before he could reprimand them. He pulled out his phone from his pocket and answered the call. He didn't say anything and just listened to the voice at the other end of the line. After getting the answer he needed, he put his phone in his pocket and looked at his former teammates and the Seirin team. "I know how to turn Tetsuya back to normal."

"What?!" everyone shouted in unison, to say they were shocked was an understatement. '_How did Akashi managed to do that!_'

Riko couldn't believe it. "H-How?"

"I ordered one of my father's subordinates to ask about the vanilla candies that Kiyoshi-san bought," Akashi responded.

They did remember that he said vanilla candy and the address of the candy shop when he made a call although they were still wondering how anyone could have understood the situation with just that information. They instantly realized that the Akashi family and its subordinates are also frightening just like their master.

Akashi ignored the intriguing looks he was getting and explained how to revert Kuroko to his normal self. "Anyway, the candy's effect will vanish on its own so there's no need for any antidote." Everyone sighed in relief for that. "The only problem is—"

"What?" the power forward of Seirin butted in.

The members of the Generation of Miracles gave him pitying looks because they know that what their former captain hated the most is being interfered.

The red haired captain of Rakuzan glared at Kagami. "Don't interrupt me and you'll find out."

The dark red haired ace of Seirin gulped in fear and meekly nodded his head.

"As I was saying," Akashi continued. "The only problem is that the candy's effect lasts for seven days, which means that Tetsuya will stay as a kid for a week."

"A week?" Koganei asked in bewilderment.

"But how about school and his family?" Hyuuga asked, concerned for his underclassman. "Won't they be worried if Kuroko didn't show up for a week? Or are you saying that we should tell them about Kuroko's situation?"

"You don't have to worry about that," the red haired captain said. "I already notify your school about his absence. Also, I already told his parents that he'll be staying with his classmate for a week so they won't be looking for him."

'_Since when?!_' everyone silently asked in alarm, but of course, they didn't dare voice out their thoughts. Nonetheless, they were amazed at Akashi's influence to even notify a school he isn't even attending, as well as informing Kuroko's parents.

"Um, Akashi?" Kiyoshi tried to get the red head's attention. "You said classmate, but where would Kuroko stay?"

"He could stay with me!" the small forward of Kaijou enthusiastically volunteered. He wants to dressed up little Kuroko in cute outfits (or even dresses), he could take pictures, too. And besides, he's positively sure that his older sisters would love the phantom kid.

"As if!" both Kagami and Aomine vehemently rejected his idea, they have inkling on what the blond was planning to their shadow.

Momoi raised her hand. "What about me? Tetsu-kun could stay with me. I could cook for him!"

Every one of them blanched when they heard that. '_You'll only kill him!_'

"No!" Riko interjected. "Kuro-chan will stay with me! And he'll like my cooking more than yours!"

'_You're no better!_'

"Hmph!" Midorima pushed his glasses at the bridge of his nose. "It's better if Kuroko stays with me. My family will take care of him and he'll learn much more with me than any of you fools."

'_That's what you said but you're going to teach him about Oha-Asa, aren't you?!_'

"Ah~ I want Kuro-chin to stay with me, too. But there's no more space in our house," Murasakibara grumbled.

'_Then, don't join in their quarrel!_'

"Shut up! Kuroko/Tetsu will stay with me because he's my shadow!" both Kagami and Aomine shouted in unison, joining in the fight. They both whirled at each other for that.

"Huh? Don't talk big Kagami! I was his light first!" Aomine threateningly yelled.

"That was in the past, before you discarded him! I'm his light now!" Kagami retorted.

'_That has nothing to do with this!_'

"No! Kurokocchi will stay with me!"

"What are you talking about Ki-chan? Tetsu-kun will stay with me!"

"Huh?! Kuro-chan will be going with me!"

"I'm much more suitable to stay with Kuroko."

"Kuro-chin~"

"Tetsu was still my shadow!"

"Kuroko is my shadow, too!"

Akashi had enough of their senseless argument and glared menacingly at all of them. "Enough. Stop with your nonsense bickering. Everyone will have a turn of taking care of Tetsuya. We'll let Tetsuya decide on who he will stay with first."

The red haired captain looked down at the teal head boy in his arms who—without him noticing—actually fell asleep (how he fell asleep in the midst of all those shouting, no one knows). As much as Akashi hates to wake the little phantom up considering he was sleeping peacefully, he has no choice or everyone will resume their stupid squabble. Akashi gently shook the teal head boy up. "Tetsuya, wake up," he quietly called.

Little Kuroko slowly opened his eyes, showing those beautiful cerulean color and looked at the heterochromatic gaze of his Sei-nii.

The red head gave the boy a small smile. "I'm sorry for waking you up Tetsuya," he softly said while rubbing Kuroko's back soothingly. "But we need your help."

Little Kuroko blinked. "Help?"

Akashi nodded. "You parents as well as your grandmother left, they have some business to take care of. And so, they asked us if we can let you stay with us for a week."

Everyone gaped at the captain of the Rakuzan basketball team and his ability to create a perfect lie in such a short time.

"Otou-sama, Okaa-sama and Obaa-sama left?" the teal head boy asked.

The red head nodded his head again. "Yes, for a week," he confirmed. "Because of that, we're letting you decide on where you want to stay for the night."

"Then," little Kuroko shyly looked up at Akashi. "Can I stay with Sei-nii?"

Akashi sighed in regret. "I'm sorry Tetsuya but I can't take you with me. My father asked me to take care of some of our businesses so I'll be busy for a few days and won't have the time to take care of you." He really hated his father right now for his inexplicable bad timing, he'd rather take care of little Kuroko than meeting some associates of his father or handling some paper works; still he was happy that Kuroko chose him first.

The teal head boy looked so crestfallen at the red head's reason; he was really looking forward to spending more time with his Sei-nii. "I understand," he said forlornly.

The red haired captain patted little Kuroko's head in comfort. "It's okay Tetsuya. You can pick someone else."

Kuroko nodded at Akashi. With his finger in chin, he looked at all of his nii-chan and nee-chan, deciding on who he will stay with for tonight. It wasn't that hard for him and quickly made up his mind. "Kagami-kun!" the teal head declared, pointing at the ace of Seirin. "I want to stay with Kagami-kun!"

"Yosh!" Kagami shouted triumphantly, Kuroko chose him out of everyone else especially that Ahoumine (there's Akashi but that's an entirely different matter). He grinned at the teal head boy and gave him a thumbs up. "Don't worry Kuroko. I'll take care of you."

Everyone (except for the Seirin players) wanted to beat the crap out of Kagami's self-satisfied face. But they held back or little Kuroko would start crying and as a consequence might hate them and they really don't want that to happen. But it doesn't mean they won't voice out their disapproval.

"What?!" the blond copycat protested. "Kurokocchi, why do have to pick Kagamicchi? Choose me instead!"

"That's right. That Bakagami isn't fit to take care of Tetsu, he might neglect him or something," Aomine added.

"I don't want to hear that from you!" Kagami objected.

"Stop it," the Rakuzan captain coldly said. "Tetsuya already made his decision. We should respect his wishes."

The three aces immediately quieted at the red head's rebuke.

"With that decided, Tetsuya will stay with Kagami Taiga tonight," Akashi said and turned to Seirin's power forward. "Kagami-kun, you will ask Tetsuya later on whom he wants to go with tomorrow so you can inform that person. That person can pick Tetsuya up at your place in the morning," he instructed and regarded everyone else. "The same procedure applies when Tetsuya chooses anyone of you. Do you understand?" Everyone nodded at him.

The red head gave all of them a dark look. "And if by any chance, something bad happened to Tetsuya," he said and gave them a sickeningly sweet smile that promises a world of pain and torture. "You will answer to me. Got it?" Every one of them once again nodded furiously but this time in terror.

The red haired captain of the Generation of Miracles checked the time on his watch. "It's getting late, we should go home. Tetsuya needs to rest." He put little Kuroko down and knelt at the boy's height. "Are you okay Tetsuya? If you feel tired just say so."

The teal head boy shook his head. "I'm fine Sei-nii."

The red head's left hand came up to caressed little Kuroko's cheek tenderly. "Be a good boy, okay Tetsuya?"

The little phantom nodded his head determinedly. "Don't worry Sei-nii. I'll be a good boy."

The Rakuzan captain ruffled Kuroko's hair, stood up and turned to his former teammates in Teikou. "We're going ahead. Say your goodbyes to Tetsuya."

The blond copycat of Kaijou took the initiative and proceeded to hug the adorable phantom. "Kurokocchi, why didn't you pick me?! I don't want to say goodbye to Kurokocchi!" Kise protested and rubbed his cheek with Kuroko's. "Kurokocchi~ Kurokocchi~"

Noticing that the teal head boy was getting uncomfortable, the blue haired ace of Touou pulled Kise away by his collar. "That's enough Kise. Let the others have their turn," Aomine said and patted his former shadow in the head. "Bye Tetsu."

"Bye Aomine nii-chan!"

Kise tried to reach his beloved mentor but Aomine dragged him away. "No! Kurokocchi~"

"Bye Kise nii-chan!" the little phantom waved at the wailing blond.

Just like Kise, the pink haired manager of Touou hugged little Kuroko to death and cried, "Tetsu-kun! Why did you have to choose Kagamin over me?! I can take care of you!"

"Momoi, you're suffocating Kuroko," the green haired shooting guard of Shuutoku spoke. "Let him breathe."

Momoi pouted but let go of the teal head boy. "Bye Tetsu-kun!"

"Bye Momoi nee-chan!"

Midorima patted little Kuroko on the head as a goodbye.

Kuroko smiled at the green haired teen. "Bye Midorima nii-chan!"

It was the purple haired center of Yosen's turn and ruffled the little phantom's powder blue hair. "Bye Kuro-chin~. Let's play together again~"

"Un! Bye Murasaki nii-chan!"

Akashi patted little Kuroko on the head, too. "I'll see you soon, Tetsuya." He turned around and started to walk away with the rest of the Generation of Miracles following suit (or in Kise's case, being dragged away).

"Bye Sei-nii!" Kuroko said and waved at their retreating figure.

The Seirin basketball team breathed a sigh of relief when the members of the Generation of Miracles left the school gym. Even if they weren't playing basketball, the Generation of Miracles still give off an aura of supremeness when they were together. They guess that's one of the reasons why they're the strongest basketball team in middle school, the feared and undefeatable Generation of Miracles.

"Man, my heart is still beating faster," Koganei said clutching his chest.

"I don't know whether to be relieved or be bothered that all of the members of the Generation of Miracles came here on this day," the point guard of Seirin worriedly said. "Just the day that something happened to Kuroko."

Kiyoshi smiled at him and said, "Well, there's no helping it. As the saying goes, 'The _Miracles_ are drawn to one another'(2)"

"I told you there is no such saying!" Hyuuga snapped at the so called Iron Heart.

Riko sighed at her team's antics. "Stop it. You heard what Akashi said. It's time to head home."

"Okay!" everyone agreed with their coach.

The dark red haired ace held out his right hand to the kid version of his shadow. "Let's go Kuroko. We're going home."

Little Kuroko looked up at Kagami before taking the teen's hand. "Un! Let's go home Kagami-kun!"

* * *

… **Everything.**

* * *

**Notes: **

**(1) Akashi -** Little Kuroko doesn't know Akashi's name when he said this. He said _Aka_ (red)because of Akashi's hair and _Shi_ (commander/ruler/king etc.)because he can feel the superior aura that Akashi gives off.

**(2) The Miracles are drawn to one another - **Kiyoshi did say this on KnB _Kiseki no Shiai_ when Murasakibara appeared on Seirin's (as well as Shuutoku, Kaijou and Touou's) training camp. Hyuuga's response to Kiyoshi is more or less the same, too.

**A/N: **Yay! We're now done with the first phase! It's time for the second phase to commence! But first...

**Next: Omake 1: Vanilla Milkshake - **On the way to Kagami's apartment, the pair stopped to eat at Maji Burger. Kagami bought little Kuroko's first vanilla milkshake.


	7. Omake 1: Vanilla Milkshake

**Title :** **Regression**

**By: revenanttrickster**

**Disclaimer: Kuroko no Basket is owned by Fujimaki Tadatoshi**

**A/N:** Thanks: **LenXKagamine12234, LovelyAria, kuroshiro.19, BrokenBlackCat, Booklover2526, Faliara, hazyounez, Ciel D'or Serendipite, LyricoJ, Kuro-Inazumi, Bloody Morning, x10TIMEx, Crossroader32, AnimeAngelChick, iiAnimeLover, XxDeadSkiesxX, gypsydancer529, miki565, scratchart123, animelver14, Eleoopy, xXxOtAkU-444xXx, aibeloved, Chii, NekoTama-1110, rinrinlen12, Anonymouse **for the reviews! Anyway, here is the first omake. Enjoy!

* * *

**Omake 1: Vanilla Milkshake**

* * *

With the setting sun's yellow-orange color as a backdrop, its glow combining the evening sky's dark blue hue were casting a certain pair's shadow on the ground. Kagami Taiga, the power forward and ace of Seirin basketball club was walking home towards his apartment and beside him was his partner and their team's passing specialist, Kuroko Tetsuya. In another day, this scene would have been normal but due to some unexplainable circumstances, it was now a bit…different.

Kuroko, the phantom sixth man of the Generation of Miracles, turned into a kid by accidentally eating a special vanilla candy. Not only that, he mentally regressed to his five year old self and as a result, he couldn't remember Kagami, his current team in Seirin and even his former teammates in Teikou. And what's more, the candy's side effect lasts for seven days. Therefore, his shadow will have to stay as a kid for a week.

The pair continued walking with the teal head clutching the dark red head's left hand, which Kagami insisted on before leaving the school. Even though, the boy's lack of presence wasn't as bad as the older Kuroko, he doesn't want to leave it to chance and lose him. And besides, if he lost sight of Kuroko even for a moment, Akashi will skin him alive. Now that he had the chance to think about it, his coach, teammates and the rest of the Generation of Miracles will kill him was well if something dire happened to Kuroko.

The dark red head glanced down at the miniature version of his shadow. He was a bit nervous given that the boy hadn't said a thing ever since they left the school. He was wondering if he did something wrong. If it was the older Kuroko, he won't mind the silence, for the phantom wasn't all that talkative. But the teal head kid was the opposite, he was showing more emotions, talking more animatedly, not to mention, he was smiling and laughing more compared to his older self.

Kagami was ecstatic that Kuroko chose to be with him tonight but then again, the only thing on his mind at that time was his silent competition with Aomine. But now that he was left alone with the little phantom, he was suddenly anxious. He doesn't know first thing on how to take care of a kid, heck, he hadn't even taken care of any kid before so he doesn't know what to do right now. Kuroko looked so thrilled and excited when he picked him and he doesn't want to disappoint the little kid. So he's going to prove to everyone else especially that arrogant Aomine that he can take care of Kuroko by showing that he's a good influence to the boy. But first, he has to think of something that will break the strained atmosphere between them.

The ace of Seirin suddenly stopped walking when he thought of an idea, making little Kuroko stopped to a halt as well. Kagami let go of the boy's hand and knelt down in front of Kuroko. "Before going home, do you want to take a little detour?" he asked.

The teal head boy blinked questionably at him. "I don't mind but where are we going Kagami-kun?"

Kagami grinned. "To Maji Burger! I'm kind of hungry, plus there's something there I want you to try."

Little Kuroko tilted his head at the dark red head. "But wouldn't Kagami-kun lose his appetite if he eats before dinner?"

"It's fine," said Kagami, reassuring the boy. "I have a huge appetite anyway." He stood up, took little Kuroko's hand and went to the direction of Maji Burger.

Upon arriving at their destination, they immediately went to the counter which fortunately, doesn't have any line. The ace of Seirin ordered his regular meal which consists of twenty seven burgers and a soda. And of course, he ordered vanilla milkshake for the teal head boy and in kid size, too. After paying, they went to their usual table near the window, with little Kuroko sitting across the dark red head.

The teal head boy was intently eyeing the mountain of burgers that Kagami ordered in astonishment; he never met anyone that could eat that many in one sitting and they were still going to eat dinner later, too. He peered at the dark red head. "Can you eat all of that, Kagami-kun?"

Kagami remembered that the older Kuroko more or less said that same thing when they first met there. He took a bite out of his first of many burgers before answering his shadow. "Yeah, don't worry. I already told you I have a big appetite. And besides, I'm a big guy so I need to eat more." He took a burger from his pile and offered it to the kid. "Why don't you try one? You'll grow taller if you eat more." _Not to mention, Kuroko might lose his weak appetite if his mini version ate more._

Little Kuroko shook his head in refusal. "I'm fine Kagami-kun. I'm not that hungry."

The dark red head shrugged. "Suit yourself. Here," he handed over the milkshake to the boy. "This is yours."

The teal head boy took the offered drink and stared at it. "What's this Kagami-kun?"

"Vanilla milkshake," Kagami answered. "You always like to drink that stuff."

"I do?" the boy asked, blinking up at him. Sometimes, Kuroko thought, he noticed that everyone says some things he couldn't understand like about some sort of special candy or turning back to normal. And also, they act as if they know him already, which for him, felt weird since this was the first time he met everyone (they even called him in various nicknames). He couldn't even remember how he got into their school in the first place; the last thing he remembered was taking a nap at his house and waking up to find Kagami-kun and some of his nii-chan screaming in surprise. And when he asked how he got there, they just start panicking (like Kagami-kun right now) and couldn't give him any answer. He was just a kid and he wasn't that smart but based on his observations, he was sure that they are hiding something. Still, he just left it at that, he'll find out soon enough when he spends some time with his other nii-chan and nee-chan. Or he could just ask his Sei-nii, he looks the smartest out of everyone else and seems to know everything.

"U-Uh…um…you see…" the dark red head tried to say but couldn't come up with any excuse snapping the boy back from his thoughts.

The teal head boy stared at him for a moment before sighing. "It's fine Kagami-kun." He started to sip on his drink. When Kuroko tasted the vanilla flavor of the milkshake in his tongue, he instantly felt calm. This was the best drink he ever had much more than the milkshake his mother used to make. He suddenly forgot about the questions that were running through his head a while ago. With his eyes sparkling, he gave Kagami a dazzling smile. "This is delicious Kagami-kun!"

The ace of Seirin grinned and ruffled the boy's powder-blue hair. "Glad you like it."

Little Kuroko nodded and goes back to drinking his vanilla milkshake. Kagami also resumed eating his half-eaten burger. The two ate (or drink in Kuroko's case) in comfortable silence, just watching the people outside the shop passed them by.

* * *

**Notes:** About Kuroko, some of you might have noticed that Kuroko was a bit mature in here. It was purely intentional. Remember, Kuroko might turned into a kid but inside he's still the sixteen year old Kuroko we knew. So in the future chapters, you might see a glimpse of the older Kuroko especially when Kuro-chan acts mature. I'm saying it now for clarification.

**A/N: **I know that this is an omake but why do I still get the feeling that it's too short? I plan to add more scenes but I got too lazy. orz Anyhow, next chapter will feature more Kagami and Kuroko! :D

**Next Chapter: When a Tiger Cooks**


	8. Chapter 7: When a Tiger Cooks

**Title :** **Regression**

**By: revenanttrickster**

**Disclaimer: Kuroko no Basket is owned by Fujimaki Tadatoshi**

**A/N:** Thanks: **Faliara, BrokenBlackCat, Calico Neko, loliconkawaii, gypsydancer529, newerher3, luchiaseiren, Quetoa, Angel of Insania, miki565, Booklover2526, XxDeadSkiesxX, Kuro-Inazumi, Failing Mentality **for the reviews! And for those who favorite and follow this story, thank you, too! Enjoy reading this chapter :D

* * *

**Chapter 7: When a Tiger Cooks**

* * *

The ace and power forward of Seirin basketball team, Kagami Taiga, stared at the duffel bag in front of him. He and Kuroko were now inside the teen's apartment, sitting in the living room with the teal head boy marveling at the spacious apartment and its minimalistic features, Kagami gave him a tour upon arriving there. Aside from the glass-top coffee table, a small sofa, a sound system, a metal shelf which held some books and magazines as well as a television, there's wasn't any more furniture in the living room. The kitchen was the opposite though, the pots, pans and other kitchen utensils were stack neatly, the foods in the refrigerator were arranged efficiently, and there were even herbs and spices that were labeled accordingly. It seems like the dark red haired teen likes to cook in his free time. As for Kagami's room and the other rooms, he hasn't seen them yet, the boy wondered what it looked like.

The teal head boy looked at Kagami who was still staring at the bag in front of him. "Kagami-kun?" he asked, trying to catch the teen's attention. "You've been staring at that bag for a while now."

The dark red head nodded. "It's from Akashi."

"From Sei-nii?"

Kagami nodded his head again. He was shocked and a bit wary when he saw two men wearing a black suit standing in front of his apartment complex as well as an expensive car parked in front of it when he and Kuroko arrived there. He got more cautious when they called his name. It turns out they were sent by Akashi and was ordered to give him a bag full of necessities for little Kuroko, they immediately left after handing him the bag. How Akashi knew where he lived and how he prepared Kuroko's things in a short amount of time, he doesn't know nor does he have any intention of ever finding out. He valued his life, thank you very much.

"What's in the bag?" the little phantom asked, snapping the ace from his thoughts.

"It's your things," the dark red head answered and started checking the bag. It was full of children clothes in just the right size for little Kuroko and they seem brand new, too, personal items like toothbrush, toothpaste, shampoo, body wash and such and some toys. The bag was full of complete things that Kuroko will need for the whole week, as expected from the captain of the Generation of Miracles.

The teal head boy peeked at the bag as well. "Did Okaa-sama prepare that? But I haven't seen those things before and they looked new, too."

The dark red haired ace doesn't know what to say to that. "Ah…yeah…" he hesitantly replied.

The little phantom noticed that Kagami was getting uncomfortable and changed the subject. "What's for dinner, Kagami-kun?" he asked. "You said that you'll cook tonight."

Kagami blinked at the sudden change of topic but still nodded in confirmation. "What do you want for dinner?" he asked the boy. "I can make you anything you want."

Little Kuroko thought deeply and quickly made his decision. "Curry!" he exclaimed, flashing a bright smile to the teen.

The dark red head was glad that he can finally control the urge to blush whenever he saw the teal head's dazzling smile. It makes him question some things. He grinned at the boy and ruffled his hair. "Curry it is then." He went to the kitchen to start making their dinner but stopped when he remembered something and turned to his shadow. "Do you want to help?"

Little Kuroko blinked in surprise, his mother never asked him that. He tried lending her his hand once but instead of helping, he distracted her even more because of his weak presence and almost ruined their dinner. He never offered his help again after that. That's why he was so happy that Kagami asked for his help although he was still reluctant since he might burden him more if he accepted.

Kagami could see the hesitation and a hint of happiness in the kid's azure eyes, he could never read Kuroko like he does right now. "Don't worry," he said, reassuring the boy while scratching his left cheek timidly. "I already know about your weak presence and I, uh, think I can work with you despite of that." _And besides, I'm used to it_, he finished in thought.

The teal head boy smiled at the awkward teen in front of him. "Un!" he finally agreed. "I'd like to help Kagami-kun!"

"Then, come over here," the dark red head beckoned the boy. Little Kuroko did as he was told and eagerly went to the kitchen.

They started working at once, Kagami asked Kuroko to pick the potatoes, carrots and onions while he started to cook the rice, prepared the beef, the pot and the chopping board. Just like when they play basketball, the two worked silently and efficiently. Vegetables suddenly appearing beside the chopping board to be chopped by Kagami just like a basketball being invisibly passed to him out of nowhere to be shot. After chopping the vegetables, Kagami heat up the pot with oil and added the vegetables to be cooked. He then added the beef and waited for it to cook before adding enough water; he covered the pot and let it simmer.

The teal head boy watched in awe at how at ease Kagami looked while cooking. Kagami noticed that the boy staring at him and asked him to fetch the curry blocks, which the boy happily obliged. After a minute or two, Kagami added the curry blocks that Kuroko fetched and also added some spices for flavor. The delicious aroma of the curry wafted through the kitchen. Little Kuroko sniffed the air in hunger.

"Hungry?" the dark red head asked when he saw what the boy was doing. Kuroko nodded and rubbed his stomach. Kagami grinned and patted the boy in the head. "Almost done," he said while stirring the curry. He took out a spoon for a taste and nodded in satisfaction when he got his desired flavor. He turned the stove off and asked Kuroko to help him set up the table. After that, Kagami went back to the kitchen to bring their plates.

Little Kuroko sat in front of the coffee table waiting for Kagami. The dark red head teen arrived from the kitchen carrying two plates of curry rice; he placed the smaller plate in front of the boy since he knows that Kuroko doesn't eat that much. The teal head boy stared at the food in front of him; it looks appetizing not to mention smells delicious, too. He couldn't wait to taste it.

After saying their prayers, the pair eagerly digs in. The little phantom hummed in appreciation when the sweet with a hint of spicy flavor of the curry burst in his tongue. And with his eyes sparkling, he beamed at Kagami. "This is so good, Kagami-kun!"

The dark red head swallowed before ruffling the kid's powder-blue hair affectionately and grinned at him. "I'm glad you like it." _It's just curry though._

The light and shadow pair ate in comfortable silence with Kagami finishing first and went back to the kitchen for more as well as fetching some water for little Kuroko. He came back and handed a glass of water to the boy and went back to eating. The teal head boy drank his water after finishing his meal and watched the dark red haired teen as he ate. Kuroko still couldn't believe at how much Kagami can eat. He just ate twenty seven burgers at Maji Burger and now he was halfway through his second serving of curry rice.

The ace of Seirin stood up for another serving and noticed that Kuroko was staring at his plate. "Do you want more?" he asked. The boy shook his head in refusal. The teen shrugged, fixed his third serving and went back to the table.

Seeing as he wasn't doing anything, little Kuroko decided to ask Kagami about some questions nagging through his head ever since they first step at the apartment. "Where are your parents, Kagami-kun?" he asked point blank.

The dark red head promptly choked at the boy's out of the blue question. The little phantom offered him some water which Kagami thankfully drank. After checking that he won't die of suffocation, he looked at the mini version of his shadow. "Why do you ask?"

Little Kuroko shrugged in reply.

Kagami sighed. "Actually, I live here alone," he said. "My parents are in America. I also grew up there and came back here in the last year of my middle school."

"America?" the teal head boy said, eyes widen in amazement. "That's pretty far!"

"Yup, pretty far."

"But is that okay?" the little phantom asked forlornly. "Leaving you here all alone?"

The dark red head took a spoonful of curry rice before answering. "My old man—I mean Dad was supposed to stay here with me but something came up and he went back. I decided to stay here though."

"But still, isn't it lonely? Living in this big apartment by yourself?" the boy insistently asked.

"At first, yeah, it was lonely," Kagami grudgingly admitted. "But ever since I started high school, meeting my teammates in Seirin and playing basketball with them, the sadness slowly fades away. My thoughts were filled of playing basketball, beating the Generation of Miracles and winning the Winter Cup with my teammates. My days were full of basketball practice, polishing up my skills and making myself stronger. Because of that, all I feel now is the excitement whenever I play basketball, the rush of adrenaline when I'm in a match, the rivalry with my opponents and the—" He stopped when he realized that he was baring all of his emotions to a kid (yeah, it was Kuroko but even so he's now a kid). Kagami stared at the teal head boy who was raptly listening to his story. "Sorry, I guess I was rambling," he said while scratching the back of his head. "Did you even understand what I was talking about?"

Little Kuroko smiled. "A little," he said. "But I did understand one thing."

"Yeah? What's that?"

"Kagami-kun really, really loves basketball so much!" the little phantom exclaimed and beamed at the teen.

Kagami ruffled the boy's powder-blue hair warmly. "Yeah, I do," he confessed, smiling slightly. "Anyway about being here alone, I wasn't the only one living here these past few weeks. Alex was here, too."

The teal head boy blinked and tilted his head at the teen. "Alex?"

"My mentor," the dark red head answered. "She taught me all I needed to know in basketball when I was a kid."

Little Kuroko looked surprised. "She? Alex-san is a girl?"

"Yeah," said Kagami, nodding his head. "Her full name is Alexandra Garcia."

"Then, where is Alex-san?" little Kuroko excitedly asked. "Is she coming home tonight?"

The ace of Seirin didn't want to upset the kid but still decided to tell the truth. "Alex isn't here. She went to Osaka."

"Oh…" the little phantom said in disappointment. "I would have liked to meet her."

_Well, I don't. Who knows what she might do when she sees you like this. Good thing she decided to go for a vacation_, Kagami thought. The dark red haired power forward took the dirty dishes to the kitchen to be washed with the little phantom following him.

"Do you need some help, Kagami-kun?" the teal head boy offered.

"Nah, I'm fine," Kagami said while washing the plates.

Little Kuroko nodded but didn't leave and stayed in the kitchen, watching the dark red haired teen do his chore.

The ace glanced at the mini version of his shadow beside him. He thought that Kuroko must be bored since he doesn't have anything to do. "Kuroko do you want to take a bath?" he asked as he dried his hands with a hand towel.

Little Kuroko nodded. "Un!"

"Then, why don't you watch some TV while I go prepare your bath," Kagami said as he led the way to the living room and opened his television.

"Okay!" the teal head boy readily agreed when he noticed that his favorite program was showing.

The dark red head patted the boy on the head before going to the bathroom and picking up Kuroko's duffel bag on the way.

* * *

The dark red haired ace of Seirin sighed in contentment when he dipped his whole body in the bathtub filled with lukewarm water. He watched the mini version of his shadow in front of him played with the water. They just finished washing their bodies and were now soaking their tired bodies away. Kagami was supposed to bathe after Kuroko but he reluctantly agreed when the boy asked him if they can bathe together (as if someone can say no to that cute face).

"Hey, Kuroko?" Kagami called the little phantom. "Do you take a bath alone or with someone?" he couldn't help but asked. He doesn't know that much about Kuroko's family since his shadow doesn't talk much. A good example would be his time in Teikou. It took beating the Generation of Miracles until the night before their match with Rakuzan when Kuroko told his teammates in Seirin about what happened during his middle school.

"If Otou-sama was home, we go together," the teal head boy answered the teen's question. "Okaa-sama stays with me if Otou-sama is busy."

The dark red head leaned towards the boy. This was a good opportunity to know more about Kuroko. His mini version doesn't seem to mind him questioning. "Are you close with your family?"

Little Kuroko looked up at the dark red head and nodded. "Why do you ask Kagami-kun?"

"No-Nothing," Kagami stuttered. "What about your weak presence? Are they having a hard time because of it?"

"Sometimes," the teal head boy replied. "They can easily lose sight of me especially if we were in a crowded place like a mall. But Obaa-sama is different. She always knows where I am."

_Oh yeah, I remembered Kuroko told me one time that his grandmother lives with him_, Kagami thought. "What's your parent's job?" he asked. _Got to keep asking questions while I can._

"I don't know," little Kuroko said as he shook his head. "But they always go out in trips."

"Do they always leave you with your grandmother then?"

"No," the teal head boy said while playing with the water. "Most of the time, Obaa-sama and I joined Otou-sama and Okaa-sama on their trips."

"Oh…" Kagami wanted to know more but Kuroko wouldn't like it if keeps probing his mini version for more information. Not to mention, little Kuroko doesn't seem to know much, which is a given considering he's a kid.

"Okay, I think we've stayed here long enough," Kagami said as he stood up and picked little Kuroko out of the bathtub. The dark red head dried himself and Kuroko before putting on their pajamas. He put his towel on the back of his neck to catch some droplets of water on his nape and dried Kuroko's hair and then his. After that, they went back to the living room.

The ace of Seirin stared at his shadow's hair, they were sticking out everywhere. "Uh, Kuroko?" he asked. "Do you want to brush your hair?"

The teal head boy touched his messy hair before shaking his head.

"Are you sure?" Kagami asked, narrowing his eyes at the kid.

Little Kuroko nodded.

"Okay, whatever you want," the dark red head said, shrugging his shoulders. "Do you want to sleep now or watch TV?"

"Watch!" the teal head boy said as he pointed to the TV.

Kagami turned on the TV and was about to leave so he could set up Kuroko's bed when he remembered something. He turned to the little phantom. "Kuroko, who do you want to stay with tomorrow?"

Little Kuroko looked up when he heard the teen's question. "Aomine nii-chan!" he answered without a second thought.

"Huh?!" the dark red haired power forward shouted in surprise. He sat beside his shadow. "Why would you pick that—" he stopped before he could curse in front of the kid. "I mean, why Aomine?"

The teal head boy put his finger in his chin thoughtfully. "Because Aomine nii-chan reminds me of Kagami-kun."

"What?! How?! In what way?!"

Little Kuroko stared at the dark red head before answering. "Both of you seems strong, determined, stubborn, and hot-headed and even has a short temper."

"You only met us for a short while so how can you say that!" Kagami reasoned.

The teal head boy shrugged. "Kagami-kun and Aomine nii-chan seems to be close because you're always talking to each other."

"No, we're not!" the dark red head said in frustration, refusing to believe at his shadow's unreasonable excuse. _And we weren't talking, we were arguing! As if I could be friends with that guy!_

Little Kuroko wasn't even fazed at the dark red haired teen's outburst and just intently looked at him. "I want Aomine nii-chan," he determinedly said.

"Fine," Kagami sighed in defeat, it seems like he can't change Kuroko's mind no matter what he do or say. "Aomine it is then," he said. "I'll go and call him."

The teal head boy nodded and returned to watching his show.

The dark red haired teen went to the kitchen for some privacy; he took out his cellphone only to remember that he doesn't have Aomine's number. _Great_, he thought. _Now what am I supposed to do?_

It seems his prayer was answered when his phone suddenly vibrated, indicating that he received a message.

_Date: XX/XX/XX XX:XX _

_From: Unknown_

_Subject: Contacts_

_Here are the Generation of Miracles' contact numbers._

The dark red head stared blankly at his cellphone. _How? Who? Don't tell me, this is— _His train of thought was interrupted when he received another message.

_Date: XX/XX/XX XX:XX_

_From: Unknown_

_Subject: None_

_Yes, it's me. Akashi Seijuurou._

_How the hell does this guy know I need Aomine's number?! _His phone vibrated again.

_Date: XX/XX/XX XX:XX_

_From: Unknown_

_Subject: None_

_Because I know everything._

"Stop answering what I'm thinking!" Kagami had enough and shouted at his phone angrily. _Jeez, all of Kuroko's teammates in Teikou are weird. _He was startled when his phone started ringing. He nervously gulped; he hoped it wasn't the red haired captain. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw it was the blond ace of Kaijou who was calling him. "What do you want Kise?" he answered, only to be almost gone deaf when the blond screamed at his ear.

"_Kagamicchi! Tell me! Did Kurokocchi pick me! Please tell me he picked me! Where is Kurokocchi! I want to talk to him!"_

"No Way! And No! Kuroko didn't pick you!"

"_Eh?! What do you mean Kagamicchi?! Tell me—"_

The dark red head wasted no time and promptly hanged up on the blond, annoyed. He hurriedly dialed Aomine's number before Akashi could send him another mysterious message or Kise calling him again or worse, the rest of the Generation of Miracles calling him. He waited for Aomine to pick up.

"_Hello?"_

"Yo, Aomine. It's Kagami."

"_Huh? Kagami? Why the hell are you calling me?"_

The dark red haired ace told himself to calm down. Talking to Aomine really ticked his nerves. _How could Kuroko say that this guy and I are the same?_ Kagami snorted at the thought. "I'm calling about Kuroko."

"_What about Tetsu? Damn it!"_

Kagami could hear the sounds of bombs exploding and guns firing through the line, it looks like Aomine was playing a game. "Kuroko chose you. I'm calling so you could pick him up at my place tomorrow."

"_Woah! Really? Tetsu picked me! I—Hey, Satsuki!"_

The dark red head took his phone away from his ear when Momoi shrieked.

"_Kagamin! Is it true?! Tetsu-kun picked Dai-chan! What about me?! Tetsu-kun could stay with me. I live near Dai-chan anyway. Kagamin, why aren't you saying anything? Talk to me!"_

_How could I when you don't even give me a chance to talk, _Kagami thought. "I don't know. It was Kuroko's decision."

"_Eh? But Tetsu-kun—Ah! Dai-chan! Give me my phone back Satsuki! No! I want to talk to Tetsu-kun! Satsuki!"_

Kagami listened to them argue, he doesn't have any intention of stopping the two students of Touou Academy squabble like children.

"_Oi, Kagami. Let me talk to Tetsu."_

It looks like Aomine won. "Why?" the dark red head asked, suspicious.

"_Tch! Just let me talk to him."_

"Don't order—"

"Kagami-kun?"

Kagami paused when he heard the teal head boy spoke. He turned to find little Kuroko peeking up at him.

"Are you okay?" the little phantom asked. "You were shouting a lot."

"Don't worry. It was nothing."

"_Is Tetsu there? Give him the phone."_

The dark red haired ace forgot that he was talking to his blue haired rival. "Fine," he grudgingly agreed and held out his cellphone to Kuroko. "Here. Aomine wants to talk to you."

The teal head boy took the offered phone. "Hello? Aomine nii-chan?"

Kagami wondered what they were talking about since the boy kept nodding his head.

"I don't mind." He heard little Kuroko said.

"Okay! Bye Aomine nii-chan! Bye Momoi nee-chan! Good night!" The boy gave the phone back to Kagami after saying his goodbyes and went back to the living room.

"What did you talk about?" the dark red head curiously asked.

"_None of your business Kagami." _Aomine then hanged up.

Kagami stared at his phone. He was angry that Aomine had the gall to hang him up. _Damn you, Ahoumine!_ he furiously thought. He tried to relax lest Kuroko would see his angry face and worry. He went to the living room where the teal head boy was currently watching.

Little Kuroko glanced up at when he felt the dark red haired teen near him. "Are you done talking to Aomine nii-chan, Kagami-kun?"

"Yeah," Kagami answered. "Anyway, I've been meaning to ask you this for a while now but why are you calling me Kagami-kun when you called the others nii-chan or nee-chan?"

The teal head boy tilted his head in thought. "I don't know. It just felt right."

"…Ha," the dark red head sighed. Sometimes he really can't understand Kuroko; even his kid version doesn't make any sense. "Let's go to sleep. It's getting late."

"Okay!"

After brushing their teeth, the pair went to the guest room where Kuroko would be sleeping. The teal head boy stared at the big bed in the middle of the room. "Is this your room, Kagami-kun?"

"Um, no. This is the guest room," he said. "My room is beside this one."

"Then," little Kuroko said and shyly looked up at the dark red head. "Can I sleep with Kagami-kun?"

Kagami was a bit surprised at the teal head's boy request. He glanced down at his shadow's puppy dog-eyed look. He sighed in defeat and nodded his head in agreement. _Only someone heartless can say no to that hopeful face_, he thought.

"Yay!" the little phantom exclaimed, took the teen's hand in his and led the way to Kagami's bedroom. Kuroko excitedly jumped on the bed, lay down under the comforters and patted the big space beside him for Kagami.

The dark red head inwardly smiled at the teal head's action and lay down at the offered space beside his shadow.

Little Kuroko turned to face the teen. "Kagami-kun, tell me a story."

"Huh? Aren't you too old for bedtime stories, Kuroko?" Kagami bewilderingly asked.

"Not those kinds of stories," the teal head boy said. "I want a story about Kagami-kun."

"But why?"

"Because I want to know Kagami-kun more."

Having heard the boy's reason, the dark red head had no choice but to comply. "What do you want to know?"

"Hmm…" little Kuroko thought hard. "Kagami-kun really loves basketball so I want to know when Kagami-kun started playing."

"Okay," Kagami agreed and started telling his story. "My parents migrated to the States when I was in third grade because of work. Since I'm not that good in speaking English yet, I didn't have many friends. But one day, this guy invited me in his team to a street basketball match. His name was Himuro Tatsuya. He became my brother."

"Eh?" the teal head boy asked shocked. "Kagami-kun, you have a brother?"

"Uh, no, we're not really blood related. Tatsuya and I were so close that we treat each other as brothers. We even have our own rings as proof of us being brothers," Kagami said and showed his ring that he was wearing as a necklace to little Kuroko.

"That's so cool," the little phantom said as he stared at the ring in wonder. "And then, what happened?"

"Oh yeah, where was I? Hmm…after that match, Tatsuya and I always played basketball," the dark red head continued his story. "He taught me the basics of playing basketball and how to keep a hot heart and a cool head."

The teal head boy pouted. "Kagami-kun, what does that mean?"

Kagami grinned at the boy. "It means that I need think first before I act. At first, I really didn't understand what he meant because I'm, uh, reckless and impulsive and tend to act first. But I understand it now."

Little Kuroko giggled at that. "So I'm right that Kagami-kun is really hot-headed."

The dark red head smirked mischievously and tickled the teal head boy in retaliation. "So I'm hot-headed, huh?"

Little Kuroko laughed heartily and tried to stop the teen. "I give up, Kagami-kun!"

Kagami grinned and stopped tickling his shadow. He ruffled the boy's powder-blue hair soothingly. "You want to hear the rest?" he asked.

The teal head boy nodded.

"One day while Tatsuya and I were playing, we met Alex. At first, Alex ignored us; she wasn't interested in teaching a pair of brats some basketball. But we were stubborn and kept playing until without realizing it, Alex played with us and taught us what we need to know in basketball and then we became her first pupils. She now teaches kids basketball. And I guess that's it," Kagami said, finishing his story.

The little phantom looked at the dark red haired teen doubtfully. "You're not telling me something, Kagami-kun," he accused.

"I-I'm not," Kagami stuttered. "Anyway, let's go to sleep." _It's not like I can tell a kid how Tatsuya and I came apart, played in a match with our rings on the line and then defeating him in the Winter Cup. And besides, he wouldn't understand any of it_, he thought.

Little Kuroko didn't pursue more since he was getting sleepy. Hearing the dark red head's story, he wants to experience playing basketball as well. It seems fun. "I want to play basketball with Kagami-kun, too," he drowsily said.

"Don't worry. Someday, we'll play together," Kagami reassured the teal head boy.

"Promise?" little Kuroko asked and held out his left pinky finger to the dark red haired teen.

Kagami intertwined their pinky fingers together and said, "I promise."

The teal head boy smiled and snuggled closer to the dark red head. Kagami pulled little Kuroko in his chest protectively. The light and shadow duo of the Seirin basketball team slept soundly that night, holding each other contentedly.

* * *

**Next Chapter: Basketball and Ice Cream**

**Notes: **Just to clarify, after Kagami Kuro-chan will pick the GOM as his caretakers (although, technically, it will be me picking). Not because I don't like Seirin. I do. It's just that, for me, the GOM are the easiest characters to write. I can put them in any situation I want and anticipate their reactions, what they'll do or even say. Meanwhile, in Seirin, I mean, I can think up some ideas for them but for some weird reason it doesn't feel...genuine. I'm sorry, I can't explain it well. But I do hope you understand. So for those who wants Seirin with Kuro-chan, I'm sorry. *bows* But don't worry, Seirin will show up, they won't just disappear in this story. They'll have their turn.

**A/N: **Finally finished this! *cries tears of joy* This was a hard chapter to write. It took me more than a week to finished this but I hoped you enjoyed reading it.


	9. Chapter 8: Basketball and Ice Cream

**Title :** **Regression**

**By: revenanttrickster**

**Disclaimer: Kuroko no Basket is owned by Fujimaki Tadatoshi**

**A/N:** Thanks: **SadisticPrincess13, Faliara, Calico Neko, gypsydancer529, flowingshadows, LyricoJ, Eleoopy, Crossroader32, BrokenBlackCat, Ryuuchi Seijuro, Quetoa, miki565, My Lunatic Crow, XxDeadSkiesxX, Myadorabletetsuya, Day-DayRyoshka, Kichou, Usagi323, aibeloved, Nikkiluv93, Icchan, therealladyearth **for the reviews! Thank you to those who follow and favorite this story, too.

Special thanks to **BlueberryFridge **for giving me the idea of Aomine-being-scolded scene. It was supposed to be mild and funny but things got out of hand and the result changed. But I still hope you like it.

And as sorry for the late update, I made this chapter extra long. Enjoy reading!

* * *

**Chapter 8: Basketball and Ice Cream**

* * *

Aomine Daiki, the ace of the Generation of Miracles and currently Touou Academy basketball club, gawked dumbly at the apartment complex in front of him. _So this is where that Bakagami lives. Lucky bastard_, the blue head thought, envious. He easily went in and up at the top floor with no trouble, it seems like Kagami already notified the guards about him. He stopped at the dark red head's apartment door and rang the doorbell.

"Wait!" he heard Kagami shouted through the door. The door opened revealing Kagami who was wearing a black apron. "Oh, it's you," the dark red head said.

Aomine raised an eyebrow. "Of course, it's me. Who did you think it was? Your girlfriend?"

Kagami didn't choose to comment, just invited the blue head inside the apartment and led him to the kitchen, where little Kuroko was currently eating his breakfast. The teal head boy turned to face them when he heard their footsteps.

"Good morning Aomine nii-chan!" the little phantom cheerily greeted their blue haired visitor.

"Yo, Tetsu," Aomine greeted back and ruffled his former shadow's powder-blue hair, making it more messy than usual.

"Stop ruffling his hair," Kagami grumbled. "Do you know how difficult it was brushing his hair?"

"You call that brushing?" the blue head said. "His hair was still messy."

"Then, why don't you try it?" the dark red head challenged him.

"Gladly," Aomine smugly said, accepting the challenge. Helping Kuroko fixed his ridiculous bed hair in the morning whenever they had their training camp back in middle school, has its own advantages (although Kise was the one who normally did this but he can do it, too). He expertly and effortlessly brushed Kuroko's teal locks until it was in its usual style and only in a few minutes at that (Kagami took half an hour). He smirked at Kagami when he was done. "Well? What do you think?"

"Whatever," the dark red head glumly said. He took off his apron, put it in its usual place and sat in his chair to eat his breakfast.

The teal head boy looked up at the blue haired who was still standing and smiled. "Thank you for fixing my hair Aomine nii-chan."

"No problem Tetsu."

"Are you going to eat breakfast with us Aomine nii-chan?" the little phantom asked.

"Nah," Aomine said as he shook his head. "I already ate. And besides, is that even edible?" he stared at the pair's breakfast which consists of sunny side-up eggs, some bacon, and some toasts with a small jar of jam at the side. It looks like Kagami cooked an American style breakfast (actually, Kuroko requested it).

The dark red head snorted at the insult but didn't say anything since he was busy eating some bacon.

"Of course, it's delicious!" little Kuroko exclaimed, not knowing that the blue head was indirectly insulting Kagami. "Kagami-kun is a good cook!"

It was now Kagami's turn to smirk smugly at Aomine.

The blue haired teen chose to ignore that and face his former shadow. "Are you done Tetsu?"

The teal head boy drank his water before nodding a yes. "But I have to change out of my pajamas first," he said as he stood up.

"Need some help?" Aomine asked.

"I'm fine Aomine nii-chan," little Kuroko said while shaking his head. He hurriedly went to Kagami's bedroom to change.

Meanwhile, the dark red head took his plates as well as Kuroko's in the sink to be washed.

"How is Tetsu?" the blue haired ace of Touou asked, still staring at the direction the boy went.

Knowing what Aomine was really asking, Kagami answered, "He's a good kid. He's not like the other kids who were always crying. It wasn't that hard taking care of him."

"…I see," was the only thing the blue haired teen could say.

The teal head boy came back as fast as he could. "I'm done!" he declared. He was wearing a white shirt with a sleeveless light blue hoodie on top of it, a brown short and completing the look was a pair of white socks.

"Okay, we're leaving then."

"Don't you have school today Aomine nii-chan?" little Kuroko asked when he noticed that Aomine wasn't wearing a school uniform but a light-coloured V-neck sweater, a black jacket and white trousers.

"He must be skipping," the dark red head interjected. "Don't copy this guy Kuroko. He's a bad influence."

"Shut up Kagami," the blue head said, irritated. "It's my school's anniversary today so we're having a day off."

Kagami snorted and went to his bedroom to put on his gakuran and pick up Kuroko's bag as well.

"Where's Momoi nee-chan, Aomine nii-chan?" the teal head boy asked as he looked up at Aomine.

"She had some errands to run so she couldn't go with me to pick you up," the blue head replied. "Don't worry, you'll see her later."

The dark red haired ace of Seirin came back, now wearing his gakuran and gave the duffel bag full of Kuroko's things to Aomine.

"What's this?" the blue head asked as he took the bag from Kagami.

"It's Kuroko's," Kagami answered. "Akashi delivered it here yesterday."

Aomine nodded, understanding what that meant. He slung the duffel bag over his shoulder and held out his right hand to little Kuroko. "Let's go."

"Un!" the teal head boy nodded and took the offered hand.

The trio left Kagami's apartment without any fuss, which was shocking considering that the dark red and blue haired ace always argue whenever they see each other. They were walking down the street quietly, when Aomine had enough. "Why are you following us?" he asked, glaring at Kagami.

The dark red head glared back. "It's not my fault that we're going in the same direction."

Little Kuroko, sensing the tense atmosphere, looked between the two teens. "Are you fighting again Kagami-kun, Aomine nii-chan?"

The two aces stopped glaring daggers at each other when they heard the kid's question. "No," they said as they both looked away. They resumed their walking.

They passed a few more roads before Kagami suddenly stopped, he pointed at the road to his right. "I'll be going this way."

"Oh…" the teal head boy said, he was sad that he has to part ways with Kagami. "Bye Kagami-kun."

"Bye Kuroko," the dark red head said and patted the kid's head.

"Please tell Riko nee-chan and all the other onii-chan that I said hi."

"Will do," Kagami said. He nodded in the blue head's direction, waved goodbye to little Kuroko and walked down the road towards Seirin High School.

The little phantom waved back at the dark red head's retreating figure.

Aomine looked down at his former shadow. "Let's go Tetsu."

The teal head boy nodded in agreement. The ace and mini version of the phantom sixth man of the Generation of Miracles walked in comfortable silence to the blue head's house.

* * *

"I'm home," the blue haired ace of Touou said as he took his shoes off and replaced it with indoor slippers. Little Kuroko copied him and took off his shoes, too.

"Welcome back Daiki," a beautiful middle aged woman greeted back. She was dressed in classic office attire, a white shirt with a dark blue navy jacket on top of it and a dark blue pencil skirt that rests above her knees. She was tall at five feet and five inches and has a flawless white skin (Aomine must have inherited his dark skin from his father). Her wavy blue hair—which is the same shade as Aomine—flowed freely from her back reaching up to her waist and her eyes as blue as the sky glittered in happiness at seeing her son. "You're back early," she said. "Where is Tetsuya-kun? I haven't seen that boy for a while now."

Aomine glanced at the teal head boy who was hiding behind him, he urged little Kuroko forward so that he could meet his mother. "Tetsu, meet my mom." He turned to his mother and gestured towards the boy. "Mom, this is Tetsu."

The blue haired woman gaped at the cute boy in front of her, not knowing how to react. After finally snapping out of stupor, she smiled—a sickeningly sweet smile—at her son. "You have a lot of explaining to do Daiki-kun~"

The ace of Touou blanched and gulped nervously. When his mother smiled like that it means hell for the one receiving it. Not to mention, she called him 'Daiki-kun' which really means bad news for him. He nodded his head in fear.

The blue haired woman knelt down so she could see the boy clearly and smiled. "Hi, I'm Aomine Akemi (1). I'm Daiki's mother."

The teal head boy stared at the woman in front of him, he shyly smiled back. "I'm Kuroko Tetsuya," he introduced himself and bowed. "Nice to meet you Aomine-san."

"Nice to meet you, too." Aomine Akemi straightened up and beckoned the two boys inside the house. "Don't just stand there boys, come in."

The three of them went inside, the blue haired woman to the kitchen to prepare some snacks and tea with Aomine following her so that he could explain Kuroko's situation after settling the boy down in the living room. While Akemi was setting some manjuus (2) in a plate, Aomine told her the story.

"…and that's what happened," the ace said finishing the story. He was currently sitting at the kitchen table and was about to sneak some manjuu.

The blue haired woman smacked his hand away as she started pouring tea to the cup. "I see," was the only thing she said to her son's story.

"You don't seem surprised," Aomine said as he rubbed his aching hand, his mother slapped hard.

Akemi smiled at her son mysteriously. "I've heard far stranger things than that Daiki."

With that enigmatic message, they went back—with Aomine carrying the tray of tea and manjuus—to the living room where little Kuroko was currently watching TV.

"Why don't you try some manjuu Tetsuya-kun?" the blue haired woman offered as she put the plate of manjuus on the table and handed a cup of green tea to the boy.

"Thank you Aomine-san," the teal head boy said as he took the offered cup.

"My, still polite as ever I see," Akemi said and pinched little Kuroko's chubby cheeks. "You're so cute. I wish I had a son as cute and as polite as you. Daiki turned out to be such a bore." She slyly glanced at her son.

Aomine rolled his eyes. "Stop it, Mom. You're being weird again," he said, ignoring the insult. If his mother keeps this up, there's a chance that she might proposed to adopt the boy. It wasn't unlikely to happen since she did offer to adopt Kuroko when he first brought the teal head to his home once. He was actually surprised that Kuroko took it in a stride and declined the offer politely. It shouldn't have been enough to discourage his mother but it didn't, she actually fell in love with the teal head more. She always talks about adoption whenever she has a chance she could get. He marveled at Kuroko for always putting up with his mother's antics.

The blue haired woman paid no heed to her son's remark and sighed. "I hate to leave Tetsuya-kun here all alone but I can't cancel my salon appointment—"

_What am I, air? _The ace of Touou sarcastically thought. _I'm right here!_

"—because I need to look young and beautiful for my dear in our trip," Akemi continued—unaware of her son's raging thoughts—and cupped her blushing face in elation.

Aomine shifted awkwardly, he really hated seeing his parents being all lovey-dovey in front him. There were some instances that, let's just say, scarred him for life.

"Speaking of which, where would Tetsuya-kun stay for the night?" the blue haired woman asked. "Your father and I will be gone for the whole weekend. And you'll stay at your uncle's place tonight because he needs your help with something so Tetsuya-kun can't stay here tonight."

"I already took care of it," Aomine said. "Tetsu will stay at Satsuki's place tonight."

"Oh~ Satsuki-chan, eh~?" Akemi said a teasing smile on her lips. "Why don't you just cancel your trip to your uncle's? Just stay here with Tetsuya-kun and invite Satsuki-chan, too. All three of you staying at this house all alone, it's just like having your own family Daiki."

The ace of Touou sighed and scowled at his mother's poor attempt of matchmaking. "Mom, how many times do I have to tell you that Satsuki and I don't have that kind of relationship?"

The blue haired woman pouted at her son. "You're no fun Daiki," she said. "Or maybe, both of you are in denial? I was in that stage once with your father. There was one time while I was out with my friends, and your father—"

"Okay, okay, that's enough Mom," Aomine intruded, his mother will go on and on about the supposed love stories between her and his father if he won't stop her right now. "You'll be late for your appointment."

"Oh my, you're right," Akemi said as she checked her watch for the time. "I'll be going ahead then. It was nice meeting you Tetsuya-kun~" She pinched the teal head boy's cheeks again.

Little Kuroko, who was quietly listening on their conversation as he ate, smiled at the woman. "It was nice meeting you, too Aomine-san. Have fun on your trip!"

_So cute~_, the blue haired woman thought as she sighed in bliss at the adorable boy. "Thank you," she said and then turned to her son. "Bye Daiki. Take care of Tetsuya-kun, okay?"

The ace of Touou lazily nodded. "Yeah, whatever."

Akemi raised an eyebrow at her son's nonchalance but didn't comment on it and merrily left the house.

Aomine let his shoulders relax after he was sure that his mother had finally left. He forgot how draining it was controlling his mother whenever Kuroko visited his place. He looked at the teal head boy who was currently sipping his tea calmly.

Little Kuroko noticed that the ace's blue eyes were fixed on him. "Is there something wrong Aomine nii-chan?"

"…Nothing."

"Aomine-san seems like an interesting person," the teal head boy commented. "And pretty, too!"

The ace of Touou sighed at the boy's words. _You said the same thing when you first met her. _He took a manjuu from the plate. "After we eat, what do you want to do?"

Little Kuroko glanced up at the teen contemplating. "Does Aomine nii-chan play basketball?" he finally asked.

Aomine blinked in surprise but, nonetheless, answered. "Yeah, I do."

"Then, can Aomine nii-chan teach me basketball?"

"I don't mind but why?"

"Kagami-kun promised me that we'll play basketball next time. But I never played basketball before so I want to learn."

Aomine frowned. He felt something he couldn't describe when he heard the boy's reason. Okay, he was bit…jealous. There, he said it. He wants to be the first one to play and teach little Kuroko basketball. He was his light first before Kagami anyway. He's entitled to it. _And besides, making a promise to a kid, that idiot! Can he even fulfill that promise?_ He looked down at the little phantom. "I'll teach you and then afterwards we can play together."

The teal head boy's cerulean eyes sparked in excitement and happiness. "Un! I can't wait!" he exclaimed and gave the teen a dazzling smile.

The ace of the Generation of Miracles grinned at his former shadow, ruffling the boy's powder-blue hair. The pair ate their manjuu and laughed heartily as Aomine told his adventures of catching crayfishes and cicadas in the summer when he was a kid.

* * *

After eating their snacks, the ace and mini version of the phantom sixth man of the Generation of Miracles went to a nearby street ball court to play. Aomine taught the teal head boy the basics of basketball like how many players there are and their positions, how long a game lasts in each quarter, point system and other basic rules. At first, he was worried that little Kuroko wouldn't understand but as it turns out, Kuroko absorb his teachings like a sponge. The only problem is…

The blue head inwardly sighed when the teal head boy tried to dribble the ball only to fail yet again. Little Kuroko was starting to get frustrated when he couldn't dribble the ball even once and his Aomine nii-chan took the time to teach him, too.

Aomine, sensing what the boy was feeling, patted little Kuroko on the head in comfort. "Sorry Tetsu. I forgot you couldn't use this ball yet," he apologized.

The teal head boy blinked up at the blue haired teen, brushing away the tears that were gathering in the corner of his eyes. "What do you mean Aomine nii-chan?"

"Well," Aomine said as he picked up the ball. "This is the ball that I usually used when I play. But there are basketballs for kids like you, they're smaller than this." He handed the ball back to the boy. "But we can still play even if you can't dribble."

"Really?" little Kuroko asked, hopefulness shining in his azure eyes.

"Yup!" Aomine went under the basket. "Here. Pass me the ball Tetsu."

The teal head boy looked worried. "I don't know if I can pass the ball all the way there Aomine nii-chan."

"You wouldn't know unless you try," the blue head said, persuading the kid. "Just pass the ball as hard as you can Tetsu."

Little Kuroko nodded, determined. He didn't know why but something was telling him that he can do it if he set his mind to it. It was like his body was on auto pilot; he put his left foot forward, his body bending a little and both of his hands were holding the ball. And with a flick of his wrists, he passed the ball as hard as he can to Aomine.

The blue head's eyes widen in surprise when he saw the teal head boy's form. It was like Kuroko's cyclone pass minus the spinning and both of his hands were holding the ball. He blinked when he saw the ball coming through his way; he easily caught it, automatically spun around and dunked the ball hard in the basket. He hanged onto the hoop for a minute before letting go.

Little Kuroko clapped his hands in awe at the teen's powerful dunk. "You're so cool Aomine nii-chan!"

"Ah…" Aomine said, distracted. He looked at his hands reminiscently, a sense of nostalgia hitting him. When he caught the little phantom's pass, a scene in the past flashed through his mind. The roughness of the pass, the sting on his hand when he caught the ball and the hesitancy showing in Kuroko's eyes. It was the same as the time when Kuroko was trying his cyclone pass.

* * *

"_What are you doing Tetsu?" Aomine asked when he opened the doors of the gym and saw his shadow. He watched as the teal head half-heartedly dribbled the ball._

"_Aomine-kun," Kuroko greeted him. "I was just trying a new pass."_

"_What kind of pass?"_

"_A long pass. A pass that can reach the other side of the court."_

"_Woah! You can do that?!"_

"_I haven't done it yet Aomine-kun. Whenever I try, the ball will only reach half of the court."_

"_Well, you're going to need a powerful force to back up that kind of pass."_

"_What do you suggest Aomine-kun?"_

"_Hmm…how about a storm pass," the blue head said as he traced a circle in the air with his finger for demonstration. "The longer it is, the powerful it gets."_

"_That doesn't make any sense Aomine-kun."_

"_Just try it! You won't know unless you try, right?" Aomine said and eagerly ran on the other side of the court. "C'mon Tetsu, I know you can do it!"_

_Kuroko's eyes that were blankly staring at the blue head softened. Trust Aomine to help him whenever he's on a slump. He remembered how Aomine traced a circle in the air. Suddenly, he made a 360 degree spin and passed the ball to Aomine on the other side of the court with a flick of his wrist._

_Aomine was stunned when the teal head suddenly spun. It was thanks to his fast reflexes that he caught the ball that was rapidly coming through his way. He grinned triumphantly when he caught the ball, only to hastily drop it. "Tetsu that hurt!" Aomine grumbled as he futilely blew his stinging hands. _

"_I'm sorry Aomine-kun," Kuroko apologized as he ran to the blue head's side. "I didn't know I passed the ball that hard."_

"_Yeah…" Aomine said and then grinned at the teal head. "But you did it Tetsu!"_

_Kuroko smiled. "It was all thanks to Aomine-kun," he said. "But I still need more practice if I want to perfect that pass."_

"_I'll help you then!"_

"_Are you sure Aomine-kun? Your hands might get sore."_

"_It's fine. I'll help you complete it," Aomine said as he raised his fist to the teal head. "Because I'm your light, right?"_

_Kuroko smiled in agreement and bumped their fists together. "Let's do our best Aomine-kun."_

_Aomine grinned. "Of course!"_

* * *

"—nii-chan? Aomine nii-chan?"

The blue haired ace of Touou snapped out of his trance when he felt someone touched his hand. He looked down at the mini version of his former shadow.

"Are you okay Aomine nii-chan?" the teal head boy asked, tilting his head worriedly. "I've been calling your name for a while now but you wouldn't answer."

"Sorry, I just…remembered something," Aomine forlornly said. He shook his head as if shaking off what he just remembered and knelt down at little Kuroko's level. "Do you want to play some more?"

The teal head boy nodded. "Un!"

The ace and mini phantom of the Generation of Miracles played basketball enthusiastically, with little Kuroko passing the ball to the teen and Aomine shooting it with his formless style (which the boy found amazing). Sometimes the blue head will pass the ball to the little phantom which the boy happily caught. There was even a one time that little Kuroko wanted to shoot the ball so Aomine had to carry him near the hoop so that he can shoot, which was the same time a woman—who happened to pass by—saw them and told them that they were cute. Aomine turned red in mortification at the comment while little Kuroko smiled and thanked her. They played some more after that. It wasn't the same when they played one-on-one when they were in middle school (due to circumstances) nonetheless it was still fun for the both of them.

When the blue haired ace noticed that the teal head boy was getting tired, he suggested a break and they sat on a bench near a vending machine. Aomine got a drink for both of them. "Here," he handed the can of drink to little Kuroko.

The teal head boy accepted the drink and thanked the teen. They sat there, drinking their beverages in awkward silence, lost in their own thoughts.

"Are you sure you're okay, Aomine nii-chan?" little Kuroko asked, breaking the strained atmosphere between them.

Aomine almost choked his drink when Kuroko suddenly spoke. He looked at the boy sitting beside him. "What are you saying Tetsu?"

The teal head boy looked up at the blue head. "I don't know why but I get the feeling that Aomine nii-chan has a problem. And I want to help Aomine nii-chan because you're taking care of me."

_Are kids these days this smart and mature? Then again, this is Tetsu so I guessed its normal_, Aomine pondered in thought. He glanced at his former shadow and saw the worry in his eyes. He averted his eyes, clutched the can with both of his hands and looked down at his lap. "…It's not actually a problem," he started to say. "There's this guy, a friend of mine. We met in middle school and played basketball together. We were partners and it was fun playing with him and with our team. I always thought that we will play together as a team for as long as we could but then everything changed. I changed."

Aomine gripped the can harder. "I got too strong and overwhelmed our opponents. I just wanted a rival that could match against me but there was no one. And the next thing I knew, basketball was no longer fun as it used to be. But Te—I mean this guy, wanted to help and bring back my love for basketball. I was a jerk and ignored him. I discarded his feelings and hurt him."

"And then, what happened?" little Kuroko asked somberly.

"We graduated and went to different high schools," the blue head continued. "We met again as rivals and in our first match, I defeated him. But he never gave up and vowed to beat me if we ever played again. And when we had our rematch in Winter Cup, he fulfilled his promise and defeated me."

The teal head boy tilted his head. "You lost?"

Aomine glanced at little Kuroko. "Yeah, I lost," he said. "It sucks, you know, losing. Then again, that match was the most fun I ever played in a long while. And after that game, I finally understood what that guy was always trying to say. That winning wasn't everything." He looked up at the light blue sky—almost the same hue as Kuroko's hair. "He's always been that way, helping his friends even if we hurt him before. It was supposed to be me saying sorry because I got arrogant and prideful but instead it was him who saved me."

"So both you and your friend are okay now, right?" the little phantom asked. "You're friends again?"

The blue head scratched his left cheek. "Yeah, I guess so," he answered hesitantly. "He even asked me to teach him how to shoot since it was his weakness."

"If both of you are friends again then why do you still look worried, Aomine nii-chan?" little Kuroko wondered.

"W-Well, you know, I-I…" Aomine stammered. "I wanted to do something from him as a thank you but I don't know what to do because it's embarrassing. And it's not like we can play one-on-one since we did that a lot and I wanted it to be special. And I—"

The teal head boy interrupted the blue head's ramble by giggling.

Aomine's left eye twitched in annoyance. "Oi! Why are you laughing?! I'm being serious here!"

"Because Aomine nii-chan was being silly," little Kuroko said as his laughter died down. "If you feel grateful for your friend, all you have to do is just say thank you. If you say thank you from the bottom of your heart, I'm sure that he will accept and appreciate your feelings."

The blue haired ace blinked in bewilderment at the kid. He couldn't believe that he got a sound advice from a kid even if it's Kuroko. He grinned at the teal head boy, ruffling his powder-blue hair and stared straight at Kuroko's azure ayes, gratitude reflecting in his eyes. "Thank you Tetsu."

Little Kuroko was surprised at the sincerity in Aomine's voice. He could feel the heart-felt emotion in the teen's words. He didn't know why but hearing those words from the blue head, he suddenly felt light and content. He smiled widely at Aomine. "You're welcome Aomine nii-chan!"

The ace and mini version of the phantom sixth man of Teikou was smiling at each other as a soft breeze blew past them. Their tranquil and peaceful moment was abruptly ruined by a loud shout of, "Tetsu-kun!" Both of them whirled towards the direction of the voice and saw Momoi waving madly at them.

The pink head ran towards them and immediately sat beside the teal head, placing her 'surprise' for the boy on her lap.

Aomine gulped anxiously and pointed at the _thing_ in his childhood friend's lap. "Wh-What is that Satsuki?"

"What are you talking about Dai-chan? It's obviously a bento." Truth to be told, it really was a three layered bento wrapped in a pink colored furoshiki (3).

"Please tell me you bought that from a store."

Momoi shook her head smiled. "Of course not! I made this for Tetsu-kun!"

"Momoi nee-chan made me a bento?" little Kuroko asked before Aomine could say anything rude or otherwise.

The pink head nodded eagerly and untied the furoshiki's knot. She was excited to feed the boy with the food she painstakingly made.

"W-Wait!" the blue head stopped her. "You're going to let Tetsu eat all of that?!"

Momoi rolled her eyes at him. "Don't worry Dai-chan. I made your share."

_That's not what I meant!_ Aomine angrily thought.

The pink head continued to unwrap the furoshiki covering the bento and proudly showed the contents to both boys. The blue head's jaw dropped in shock whereas the teal head boy blinked in surprise, the bento's appearance was, simply put, unappetizing and seems inedible (Aomine expected it but this was beyond his imagination). The ume-gomashio (4) with Kamaboko flowers furikake (5) on the rice was all right except that the rice was half-cooked. The meat, which were supposed to be the chicken karaage (6) and mini hamburger were burned, its color almost black. The tamagoyaki (7) turned into a scrambled egg and it looks like that there were some egg shells in them. The only thing that looks okay was the cherry tomato salad but considering it was Momoi who prepared it, there must be something unusual in them. All in all it was, without a doubt, far from the normal bento that the little phantom eats.

Little Kuroko looked up at Aomine; silently asking for his help as he doesn't want to eat the bento but at the same time didn't want to hurt his Momoi nee-chan's feelings.

Aomine doesn't know what to do. He doesn't want to eat Momoi's cooking (once was enough) and he really doesn't want little Kuroko to taste _that_. So he has no choice but to trick her.

"Hey Satsuki, look!" the blue head yelled as he pointed at something behind the pink head.

Momoi turned to look. "What?"

Aomine quickly pushed the bento off of his childhood friend's lap, making it crashed to the ground and its contents spilling over. The three of them looked down at the now destroyed bento (although it was already ruined in the first place).

The blue head felt guilty but he had to do it or else he and Kuroko will have to suffer hours of stomachache. Little Kuroko, the only witness to the incident, tried to cheer up Momoi and suggested an idea to eat in a family restaurant.

"But," the pink head sniffed. "I made those just for you."

"I know," the teal head boy said and was starting to feel guilty as well. "I'm sorry that I didn't get to taste your bento but I'm happy that you made it for me." He smiled at Momoi. "It's the thought that counts."

The pink head stared at the teal head boy in wonder. "Tetsu-kun…" She gave the boy a bone-crushing hug. "Tetsu-kun!"

Aomine tried to separate Momoi away from little Kuroko with no success. After Momoi finally let go of the boy (to which Aomine and little Kuroko breathed a sigh of relief), they cleaned up their mess and proceeded to go to a nearby restaurant.

Upon arriving there, they ordered their lunch with Momoi choosing tonkatsu (8) with shredded cabbage, rice, miso soup and Japanese pickles. Little Kuroko decided on Japanese hamburger rice from the kid's menu. While Aomine, without a second thought, picked the yakiniku all-you-can-eat course.

Momoi and little Kuroko stared at the blue head with a deadpan expression on their faces.

Aomine noticing their expression, complained. "What?"

"You should eat more vegetables Aomine nii-chan," the little phantom reprimanded him, as if the blue head was the child and not him.

Aomine snorted. "Men are all about the meat."

The pink and teal head both shook their heads in hopelessness at the blue head's ridiculous excuse but left it at that.

When their ordered food came, they all ate with gusto and with a light conversation in between. Aomine told little Kuroko some embarrassing stories about Momoi in which Momoi retaliated with more humiliating stories about Aomine.

The teal head boy laughed at their stories and how they always squabble. _So this is how siblings bicker_, he thought. He was an only child and doesn't know how siblings act with each other, so he was glad that he can see it in Aomine and Momoi. He always wanted a sibling but it seems that his parents wasn't interested in giving him one and told him that before getting married, they decided to only have one child, which was him. He obviously knows that Aomine and Momoi aren't related but he can still see how close their relationship is. And he was lucky and contented that he got to spend time with both of them.

After eating their lunch (in which Momoi and little Kuroko watched Aomine eat until his stomach was full since they finished first), they agreed to eat GoriGori Kun for dessert. They were strolling when they passed a boutique with cute dresses on display and Momoi wanted to take a look. She asked the two boys to go on ahead as she wants to try some of the clothes. Aomine and little Kuroko looked at each other before doing what they were told, went to the direction of the nearest convenient store and left Momoi to do her shopping.

* * *

With her left hand on her knee and the other holding two paper bags, the pink haired manager panted in exhaustion in front of Aomine and little Kuroko (who were eating their GoriGori Kun) as she saw both of them at the convenient store and caught up with them. "Mou Dai-chan! Why did you pick here? It's too far away! There was a convenient store near the boutique, you know!" Momoi complained. She was looking for them for almost an hour before finding them there.

The blue head froze when he remembered why he picked this store but shook it off and shrugged his shoulders at his childhood friend in reply.

The pink head sighed hopelessly when Aomine didn't give her a decent reply. She then held out her free hand to him.

The blue head stared at Momoi's hand. "What are you doing Satsuki?"

Momoi pouted. "Where's my GoriGori Kun?!"

"Huh? Buy your own."

"I'm tired because you made me ran all the way here. At least buy me a GoriGori Kun!"

"No! And it's not like I told you to run!"

The teal head boy (thank goodness for him) intervened before things escalated. "Here," he handed his ice cream stick to Momoi. "You can have this instead Momoi nee-chan."

The blue and pink head paused at the words the boy spoke, it was the almost the same as _that _time. They both peeked at the stick little Kuroko was holding and wasn't surprised when they saw the word 'win' written on it.

_Yup, it's the same as before_, Aomine thought.

Meanwhile, Momoi's feelings and thoughts were overflowing in happiness. Kuroko, even when turned into a kid, was still the same. He gave her the ice cream stick just like that time in Teikou when Momoi fell in love with him for the first time. She couldn't contain her excitement anymore and proceeded to hug the boy. "Tetsu-kun! I love you Tetsu-kun!"

Little Kuroko was stunned when the pink head hugged him all of a sudden but happily embraced her back. "I like Momoi nee-chan, too."

Both teens froze at that, shocking the blue haired ace and Momoi, who already reached her quota of Kuroko's charm attacks, promptly fainted.

"Momoi nee-chan!"

"Satsuki!"

* * *

The ace and mini version of the phantom sixth man of the Generation of Miracles were walking silently home, with Aomine carrying the passed out pink haired manager on his back.

The teal head boy glanced at the blue and pink haired teens. "Aomine nii-chan and Momoi nee-chan sure are close."

Aomine blinked in surprise at his former shadow's statement and looked down at the boy beside him. "Yeah, I guess so. We're childhood friends after all and known each other since we were kids."

"I wish I had someone like that. Someone who I can be close with," little Kuroko said wistfully.

The blue head was getting uncomfortable since he doesn't know what to do or say to comfort the boy. He really isn't good at this sort of stuff, so he decided to just say what he thinks. "Well, you have us now, right?"

"Eh?" the teal head boy looked up at teen.

"I mean, me and Satsuki," Aomine said. "There's also that Ba—uh, Kagami and Kise, Midorima, Murasakibara, Akashi and Seirin. We're your friends now."

Little Kuroko looked astonished at the teen's speech, his heart started to beat faster and he could feel a lot of emotions he couldn't name coursing through him. And then suddenly, his eye's watered and tears started to fall down his cheeks.

The blue haired ace was shocked when the teal head boy started to cry. "O-Oi Tetsu, why are you crying?"

"Be-Because," little Kuroko tried to say but couldn't formulate his thoughts. He sniffed and sobbed louder.

Aomine was panicking now. He doesn't know how to pacify the teal head boy and he can't carry him as he was still carrying Momoi on his back. Not to mention, they were now gathering unwanted attention especially from a group of mothers sitting on the park bench (they were passing by a children's park). He carefully knelt—as to not jostle the pink head—in front of little Kuroko. "D-Don't cry Tetsu," he said trying to mollify the kid. Either the teal head boy didn't hear him or chose to ignore him as he still continued to cry.

The blue head was now at loss on what to do. He really wished Momoi was awake since she might calm the boy down. He then noticed that one mother (who seems to be the leader of the group) was marching towards him. _Great_, he sarcastically thought. _Out of everyone, this just had to happen in front of some meddlesome old hags._

"Excuse me?" the housewife (or old hag as Aomine nicknamed her in his thoughts) said as she snobbishly looked down at the crouching teen. "Just what do you think you're doing to this poor boy?"

Aomine frowned. "I wasn't doing anything wrong."

The old hag raised an eyebrow. "Really? Then why is he crying?"

The blue haired ace was starting to get pissed. "Look, I—"

"And what's more, that young lady on your back, what happened to her? Why is she unconscious?" the old hag interrupted. "Did you kidnap her? Maybe you kidnapped this boy, too! You look like someone who would do such a thing!"

Aomine clenched his fist tightly and glared at the nosey woman. "You," he hissed.

The housewife backed away in fear, the blue head looked menacing. "I-I'm g-going to call the police," she said while trembling. "I'll have you arrested."

"No!"

Both Aomine and the housewife were taken aback when the teal head boy unexpectedly shouted.

"Don't take Aomine nii-chan!" little Kuroko yelled, his eyes even when shining with tears were still full of determination. "Aomine nii-chan isn't like that. Aomine nii-chan is nice; he taught me basketball, played with me and even took care of me! He's my nii-chan so don't take him away from me!"

The blue head's eyes widen in disbelief at the boy, he was glad that little Kuroko thinks of him that way (and maybe a little bit embarrassed, too). He felt his anger dissipated at the boy's declaration. Making sure that he has a good grip of Momoi on his back, he stood up, ignoring the old hag who has a flabbergasted expression on her face and held out his left hand for the teal head boy. "Let's go Tetsu."

Little Kuroko nodded, wiping the tears at the corner of his eyes then his stained cheeks and took the teen's hand.

Aomine turned to the housewife. "Next time, maybe you should ask for the whole story before making baseless accusations," he said. "Wrong assumptions could lead to trouble, you know." He glanced at the group of mothers who were watching them in rapt attention. "And maybe you should watch your own kids more instead of gossiping with others." On that note, he walked away with the teal head boy in tow.

Once they were far enough, the blue haired ace sighed in exasperation. He really hates people who are judgmental and always meddles into other people's business.

"I'm sorry Aomine nii-chan."

Aomine looked down in surprise at the kid's apology. He can see that little Kuroko felt guilty at what happened. "It's not your fault."

The teal head boy shook his head. "It was my fault," he insisted.

"Why did you cry? Did I say something wrong?" the blue head asked, turning the conversation away to another topic.

Little Kuroko shook his head again. "I didn't cry because I was sad. I cried because I was happy."

"Huh?" was Aomine's smart reply.

The teal head boy started fiddling with his hoodie. He couldn't look at the blue head in the eye since he was feeling a bit shy. "Due to my weak presence, I never had friends. I was always forgotten and whenever I tried to talk to them, they couldn't see me. And when they did, they always tell me not to scare them. I was always all alone and I felt lonely."

He stopped to a halt and faced Aomine, who stopped walking as well. "But I'm happy now because I got to meet Aomine nii-chan and Momoi nee-chan. Even Kagami-kun, Sei-nii, Midorima nii-chan, Murasaki nii-chan, Kise nii-chan, Riko nee-chan and all the other nii-chan." He gave the blue haired teen a brilliant smile. "Aomine nii-chan was right. I now have lots and lots of friends and even gained brothers and sisters."

Aomine was speechless and doesn't know what to say but he felt happy, too. He grinned widely and ruffled little Kuroko's teal locks affectionately.

The teal boy's smiled and stared at the blue haired ace in wonder as the orange setting sun illuminated behind him, making the teen shine radiantly when he smiled.

Aomine, noticing this, asked. "What?"

Little Kuroko blinked, still smiling. "I just thought that Aomine nii-chan should smile more often."

"Huh?!"

The teal head boy giggled. "It's just that when Aomine nii-chan smiles, you seem to shine brightly like the sun. And it reminds me of Aomine nii-chan's first name."

"Wh-What?!" the blue head spluttered and he could even feel his face heating up.

"I think Aomine nii-chan looks more cool and handsome that way."

Aomine blushed harder. "Stop spouting nonsense!"

The teal head boy couldn't help it and laughed, this was the first time he saw Aomine so flustered.

"Stop laughing!"

Their ruckus caused the sleeping pink head to stir awake and opened her eyes, showing her pink orbs.

Little Kuroko saw that Momoi had woken up. "Momoi nee-chan is awake!"

The pink head blinked her sleepiness away and became aware that she was being carried on her blue haired childhood friend's back. She then asked him to put her down. When her feet touched the ground, she noticed that Aomine was wearing a weird expression on his face (and was he blushing?). She looked between him and the teal head boy. "What happened? What did I miss?" she asked.

Little Kuroko glanced at the blue head—who was still red—and smiled an innocent smile at Momoi. "Nothing~"

The pink haired manager was suspicious; there was something they're not telling her. "Both of you are hiding something. What is it?"

Aomine, after finally composing himself, scowled at Momoi. "Nothing happened, Satsuki."

The pink head pouted. "You're lying! Tell me, I want to know!"

"I told you, we aren't hiding anything."

The teal head boy watched the two teens quarrel again with a smile on his face. He then took Aomine's left hand and Momoi's right hand.

Both teens stopped arguing, looked down at the boy in surprise and saw his cute smile.

Little Kuroko held both of the teen's hands in his tighter. "Let's go home Aomine nii-chan, Momoi nee-chan?"

Pushing aside her curiosity, Momoi smiled. "Un! Let's go home."

Aomine didn't say anything and just nodded but you could see a pleased look on his face.

With the setting sun and the red-orange sky as their background, the three of them walked home with the teal head boy between the two teens, clutching their hands in contentment.

* * *

Aomine, Momoi and little Kuroko stopped in front of the pink head's house which was just beside Aomine's home. The blue head quickly said his goodbyes to little Kuroko and Momoi and dashed towards his house. The pink and teal head boy watched his retreating figure in confusion.

Momoi turned to little Kuroko. "Let's go inside Tetsu-kun. I'll introduce you to my mom and dad."

The teal head boy nodded and they went inside the pink head's home.

"I'm home! I brought Tetsu-kun with me!" the pink head announced as she replaced her shoes with indoor slippers and helped the teal head boy with his. After that, they went to the living room and saw a middle aged man—who must be Momoi's father—watching TV.

"Tetsu-kun, I'd like you to meet my father, Momoi Kazuo (9)," the pink head introduced. "Dad, this is Kuroko Tetsuya-kun."

"Nice to meet you Kuroko-kun," Kazuo greeted the boy. He was good-looking with his brown hair, gray eyes and smile on his face. He was a few inches shorter than Aomine at his six feet height. He was wearing plain black pants with a white shirt tucked in. He wasn't surprise that Kuroko turned into a kid since Momoi already told her parents about Kuroko's situation.

Little Kuroko bowed. "Good evening Momoi-san."

"Dad, where's Mom?" the pink head asked when she didn't saw any sign of her mother.

"You're mother just came home," the brunet man answered. "She's upstairs changing. She'll be down in a minute."

Precisely after that, a pretty middle aged woman came to the living room. She was an inch taller than Momoi at five feet four inches. Her magenta colored hair was the opposite of her daughter which only reached up to her shoulders. She was wearing a light blue turtleneck and a black pencil cut skirt. Her pink eyes immediately sparkled when she noticed the teal head boy beside her daughter. "Is this Tetsuya-kun?" She didn't wait for any confirmation and suddenly hugged the boy to her ample chest. "Akemi was right! You are so cute!"

Momoi introduced her mother. "Tetsu-kun, this is my mother, Momoi Tsubaki (10)."

Little Kuroko couldn't respond (he couldn't even breathe) as he was being smothered by the magenta haired woman.

Kazuo noticing this, asked his wife to let go of the poor boy. "Dear, you should let go. Kuroko-kun can't breathe."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Tsubaki said as she hastily freed little Kuroko from her crushing hug.

The teal head boy inhaled his much needed air. He really thought he was going to die from suffocation.

"Tetsuya-kun, are you hungry?" the magenta haired woman asked, she didn't know that she almost choked the boy to death evidently. "I could cook for you!"

The brunet man blanched when he heard that.

"I'll help you Mom!" the pink head volunteered. "I want to cook for Tetsu-kun!"

If possible, Kazuo paled even more. "Now dear, Satsuki, why don't I just cook dinner tonight?" he quickly suggested.

Tsubaki put her hands on her hips and raised an eyebrow at her husband. "Why?"

"And Dad, you just cooked dinner last night," Momoi added unhelpfully.

_Because you're going to kill both me and Kuroko-kun if the two of you cooked together_, the brunet thought. He smiled shakily at his wife and daughter. "Because, my dear, you just came home. I'm sure you're exhausted from your work. And Satsuki played with Kuroko-kun all afternoon so I know she's tired as well."

"I am quite tired," the magenta haired woman admitted. She thought hard for a minute. "Fine," she said, finally agreeing to her husband's suggestion. "You can cook for tonight." She turned to little Kuroko. "I'll just stay with Tetsuya-kun then."

"I'll stay here, too!" the pink head said.

_That was _close, Kazuo inwardly sighed in relief. He went to the kitchen and started preparing their dinner.

The teal head boy—unaware that he just narrowly missed death—happily played with both mother and daughter of the Momoi family.

* * *

The Momoi family plus little Kuroko ate their delicious dinner courtesy of Kazuo. In between their meal, Tsubaki told some stories about her and her husband, how she became friends with Aomine Akemi, how Momoi and Aomine first met, stories in Momoi's childhood and such. She asked the teal head boy to tell something about himself, too. It was because of that, that the pink haired manager learned new things about Kuroko that she didn't know before. Like he apparently can ski (but wants to learn), his favorite colors are red, black and blue, his favorite season is spring, his favorite fruit is strawberry, his family once had a dog and wants to adopt another (Momoi remembered Kuroko's new pet Nigou), he likes ghost stories and many more things. Momoi made a mental note to add these new information on her database and asked Kuroko (once he was back to normal) to update them.

After their hearty meal, the pink head and little Kuroko took a bath together and then played some games like shiritori (11), daifugou (12) and karuta (13) with the two adults in the living room.

It was when Tsubaki was in the kitchen, preparing the strawberry shortcake as their dessert and Kazuo was upstairs making some calls that Momoi remembered to ask little Kuroko. She turned to the boy beside her. "Tetsu-kun, where are you going to stay tomorrow?"

The teal head boy looked up at the pink head. "Murasaki nii-chan," he responded with a smile.

"Eh? Mukkun?" Momoi asked in surprise. She thought he might pick Kise or anyone in Seirin. "But why?"

"Because Murasaki nii-chan gave me vanilla candy."

The pink haired manager sweatdropped at the boy's reason, nonetheless she accepted it.

Kazuo and Tsubaki came back in the living room at the same time with the brunet man holding a book and the magenta haired woman carrying a tray of their dessert and tea.

Tsubaki put the tray on the coffee table and placed Kuroko's piece of cake in front of him. "Here's your cake Tetsuya-kun."

"Thank you Tsubaki-san," little Kuroko said, he agreed to call the magenta haired woman by her first name since she insisted on it.

Momoi took this chance and left the room to call Murasakibara. She dialed the purple head's number.

"_Hello~"_

"Hello? Mukkun?"

"_Ah, Sa-chin~ why did you call?"_

"Tetsu-kun picked you as his caretaker tomorrow. Will that be okay?"

"_Hmm~ I guess so."_

"Tomorrow is Saturday so there's no school but you'll still have to take a train to come here. You don't mind, do you?"

"_I don't mind. I'm going to Tokyo anyway since my favorite shop is in there."_

"Okay, just picked up Tetsu-kun at my place tomorrow then."

"_Okay~ bye Sa-chin~"_

"Bye Mukkun."

After ending the call, she went back to the living room and joined her family and the teal head boy as they eat their dessert.

* * *

As the pink haired manager prepared her bed (she asked little Kuroko if he wants to sleep beside her which the boy gladly complied), she asked the teal head boy if he had fun today.

Little Kuroko smiled and nodded. "Today was so much fun! Aomine nii-chan taught me how to play basketball and played with me. I even got to meet his mother. I also met Momoi nee-chan's parents and I enjoyed playing games with all of you. I'm glad I get to spend time with Aomine nii-chan and Momoi nee-chan today!"

Momoi smiled albeit a sad one. It has been a long time since she got spend time with Kuroko and Aomine like today. "Are you happy Tetsu-kun?" she asked, her voice subdued.

The teal head boy tilted his head curiously when he detected the sadness in the teen's voice and instead of answering the question; he put his left hand on the pink head's cheek. "Is there something wrong Momoi nee-chan?" he asked worried. This was the first time he saw his Momoi nee-chan so unhappy, she was always smiling and cheerful.

"It's just that…" the pink head tried to say but couldn't form any coherent thought and tears were starting to blur her vision. She hugged little Kuroko tightly. "I'm glad I met you Tetsu-kun." _I'm glad that you met Dai-chan and became his shadow. I'm glad that you became part of the Generation of Miracles. I'm glad that even after what happened in middle school, you still didn't give up. I'm glad that you fulfilled your promise and brought Dai-chan back. I'm glad that you and everyone else are okay now. And I'm glad that you're finally happy again, Tetsu-kun._

The teal head boy doesn't know how to comfort Momoi so he just let his presence calm her. It was then the he fell drowsy and sleepiness took over him, surrounded by the pink head's warmth.

When Momoi finally relaxed, she looked down and saw that little Kuroko fell asleep. She carried the teal head boy to her bed and contentedly stared at him. _Tetsu-kun is so cute~_, she thought and had an idea. _I should take a picture. I don't have a picture of Tetsu-kun as a kid yet. _She took her phone from the bedside table and snapped a couple of photos and giddily stared at them. _Ki-chan would be so jealous. I'm going to keep this to myself. _She was putting her phone back when she suddenly received a message.

_From: Akashi-kun_

_Subject: Tetsuya_

_Send me a copy of those pictures, too._

_Eh? How did Akashi-kun—_the pink head stopped her train of thought. _Never mind. It is Akashi-kun we're talking about here. _She continued reading the message.

_Also, burn Daiki's entire collection of gravure magazines. Add his stash of porn as well._

Momoi raised an eyebrow. _Just what did Dai-chan do? He must have done something really terrible if Akashi-kun ordered this. Oh, well…_

The pink head lay beside little Kuroko after sending the pictures to Akashi. She snuggled closer to the teal head boy and fell deeply asleep.

* * *

The next morning, an angry shout of "Damn you Akashi!" can be heard throughout a certain neighborhood.

Momoi—who was currently eating—blinked in surprise when she heard the scream. _He must have just found out that his collection are now gone._

Little Kuroko stopped eating and said, "I think I just heard Aomine nii-chan yell."

"Really? I didn't hear anything, must be your imagination."

Believing the pink head's words, the teal head boy shrugged and continued eating his breakfast.

* * *

**Notes:**

**(1)** **Akemi - **Aomine's mother wasn't supposed to have a name (I call her Aomine-san in my mind) but then I thought, the future chapters will feature the GOM's family. So I decided to think up a name for them. I got the name Akemi: 明 (ake) "bright" and 美 (mi) "beautiful" from Aomine's first name Daiki: 大(dai)which means "large, great" combined with 輝 (ki) "radiance".

**(2) Manjuu - **a popular traditional Japanese confection.

**(3) Furoshiki - **a type of traditional Japanese wrapping cloth traditionally used to transport clothes, gifts, or other goods. (Wiki)

**(4) Ume-Gomashio - **ume means plum while gomashio is a dry condiment, similar to furikake, made from unhulled sesame seeds. (Wiki)

**(5) Kamaboko flowers Furikake - **kamaboko is a type of cured surimi, a Japanese processed seafood product. Some kamaboko include artistic patterns, such as the pink spiral on each slice of narutomaki, named after the well-known tidal whirlpool near the Japanese city of Naruto. In this fic, it's a flower. Furikake, on the other hand, is a dry Japanese condiment meant to be sprinkled on top of rice. (Wiki)

**(6) Karaage - **is a Japanese cooking technique in which various foods — most often meat and fish — are deep fried in oil (Wiki). Thanks to the manga Shokugeki no Soma for giving me this idea. If you haven't heard of it, I recommend you to try it if you like the cooking-type of manga. It's ecchi though but I still like the story and it's interesting.

**(7) Tamagoyaki - **(you already know this but just in case) a type of Japanese omelette, which is made by rolling together several layers of cooked egg. These usually are prepared in a rectangular omelette pan called a makiyakinabe. (Wiki)

**(8) Tonkatsu - **a Japanese food which consists of a breaded, deep-fried pork cutlet (Wiki). I'm sure some of you are already familiar with this.

**(9) Kazuo - **和 (kazu) means "harmony" because his character in this story always acts as the mediator between the two women of the Momoi family. And 夫 (o) "husband, man" because well, he's a man.

**(10) Tsubaki -** like Aomine, Momoi's mother's name was derived from her first name Satsuki (さつき) which means the fifth month — May (she was born in this month, too). It also means the flower satsuki azalea (pink in color) which coincidentally, blooms in May. In short, you can assume Momoi's first name means "the flower that bloomed in May". That's why I picked a Japanese name that has a flower meaning. Tsubaki (椿) means "camellia flower" in Japanese.

**(11) Shiritori - **a Japanese word game in which the players are required to say a word which begins with the final kana of the previous word. No distinction is made between hiragana, katakana or kanji. (Wiki)

**(12) Daifugou - **a Japanese card game for three or more players played with a standard 52-card pack. (Wiki)

**(13) Karuta - **a Japanese card game.

* * *

**A/N: **Wow, that was a long note (and chapter). Anyway, wanna know why Aomine was cursing Akashi? Or why Akashi ordered Momoi to burn his magazines? Or even the reason why Aomine picked a convenient store far away from where they left Momoi? You'll find out on Omake 2!

Yeah, yeah, I know another omake. I know I can add it in this chapter but it's already too long. Also, this chapter is about Kuro-chan, Aomine, Momoi and their relationship with each other. As well as their private lives. And I want to focus more on that. Meanwhile, Omake 2 is about...well, Kuro-chan in a way. Well that, and because it seems fun to write. I hope you look forward to it :D

On a side note, to anyone interested please check out my tumblr: snowytruth. That's all! See you next update!

* * *

**NEXT: Omake 2: Kidnapped! -** Kuroko got kidnapped (and he doesn't even know it), what would Aomine do?


	10. Omake 2: Kidnapped!

**Title: Regression**

**By: revenanttrickster**

**Disclaimer: Kuroko no Basket is owned by Fujimaki Tadatoshi**

**A/N:** Thanks: **Faliara, kh07gl, Fumus000, reddragon1999, newerher3, SadisticPrincess13, Crossroader32, Kuroshiroryuu, LyricoJ, innocence-creator, tsalyah, gypsydancer529, x10TIMEx, BrokenBlackCat, miki565. Usagi323, XxDeadSkiesxX, Kuro-Inazumi, Tomoyo10798, Eleoopy, Guest, Kichou, Anonymous, CrimsonQueen24, 31ttik, Calico Neko, clarit, Ciel D'or Serendipite, rea** for the reviews. Thank you for those who favorite and follow, too. It's now 300+! You make me so happy~! Anyway, enjoy this omake :D

* * *

**Omake 2: Kidnapped!**

* * *

As the blue haired ace of Touou and the teal head boy headed to the nearest convenient store, Aomine suddenly stopped when he saw a big-chested woman and whistles in appreciation. He ceased admiring the woman when he heard little Kuroko screamed his name.

"Aomine nii-chan!"

"Tetsu!" He looked around, searching for the boy and saw a man wearing all black carrying the teal head boy away. "Oi! Where do you think you're taking Tetsu?!" He ran after the man. "Tetsu!"

The kidnapper glanced behind him only to find the blue head gaining on him. He was starting to panic when he suddenly saw an alleyway to his right. He was glad that he had the town memorized at the palm of his hand and turned to the alley. He quickly shook off the scary blue haired teen in the alleys that was as confusing as a maze. He sighed in relief when he didn't spot anyone following him.

"Are we playing hide-and-seek with Aomine nii-chan, mister?" little Kuroko innocently asked, not minding that a stranger was carrying him away from Aomine.

The kidnapper sweatdropped. _Doesn't this kid know that he's been kidnapped?_

* * *

Back to Aomine—who was currently cursing like a sailor when he lost sight of the kidnapper—got out of the alley only to bump into someone. "Ugh, watch where you're going!"

"But you're the one who—eh? Aominecchi?!" the stranger exclaimed when he saw who bumped into him.

"Kise?" the blue head said since the blond was the only one who called him by that ridiculous nickname. "What are you doing here?"

"Shouldn't be me asking that? What are you doing in an alley Aominecchi?" Kise stared at Aomine skeptically. "Don't tell me, you're doing something illegal! Don't do it Aominecchi!"

Aomine scowled. "I wasn't! Now shut up!"

The blond ace was taken aback by the blue head's outburst; he seems to be more irritated than usual. He also noticed that Aomine was getting agitated. "Something wrong Aominecchi?" he asked, worried.

Aomine was contemplating if he should tell Kise his problem or not. Though, he'll have more chance of finding Kuroko if he has the blond ace's help. He sighed hopelessly. "Tetsu got kidnapped," he said without preamble.

Kise's golden eyes widen in shock. "Eh? What are you saying Ao—wait, you mean, you're taking care of Kurokocchi today?"

The blue head nodded.

"And you let Kurokocchi get kidnapped?!" the blond yelled. "What were you thinking Aominecchi?!"

"I just looked away for a second and then suddenly Tetsu got taken away!"

"Why did you take your eyes off of Kurokocchi?!" Kise glared at Aomine. "Don't tell me you were checking out some girl and forgot Kurokocchi?"

The blue haired ace tried to defend himself but couldn't, he knows that it's true anyway.

The blond ace started to panic and roughly grabbed Aomine's shoulders. "What are we going to do Aominecchi?!"

"Tch! Calm down Kise," the blue head said as he shook off Kise's hands on his shoulders. "We'll catch that bastard. Let's split up and look for Tetsu." He described the kidnapper to the blond. "Call me if you find them."

Kise determinedly nodded and both of them went to the opposite directions, searching for the teal head boy.

* * *

The kidnapper panted as he arrived in a nearby park. Carrying a kid and running from a fast and scary teenager was no easy feat. He put the kid down as he sat on a bench.

Little Kuroko stared at the stranger. "Are you okay mister?" he asked. "If you're tired there's a fountain over there." He pointed at the drinking water fountain near the center of the park.

The man looked at the teal head boy disbelievingly. _Seriously, what is wrong with this kid?_

Little Kuroko tilted his head to the side. "Mister?"

"Hey kid," the man tentatively said. "You know that I took you away from that guy, right? The one with the blue hair?"

The teal head boy nodded. "His name is Aomine nii-chan. We're playing hide-and-seek with him, right?"

The man sweatdropped. "Uh, no, actually, I kidnapped you."

Little Kuroko stared blankly at the man for a minute before shouting, "Eh?!"

The man looked at the kid in confusion. "Why did you think I took you away from your brother?"

The teal head boy didn't seem to hear him as he was lost in his own thoughts. "I've been kidnapped," he said, shock evident in his voice. He always has a weak presence and never thought that he might get kidnapped. Then he looked up at the man with sparkling eyes. "I've never been kidnapped before!"

_Don't sound so happy about it! _The man sighed and gazed at the kid in front of him listlessly. "Aren't you scared?"

Little Kuroko regarded his kidnapper. He looked like any ordinary Japanese man with his black hair and dark brown eyes, although there's some kind of depressing aura surrounding him. He was also wearing in an all-black get up from his shirt, jacket up to his boots. Still, he doesn't look like a bad person or anything remotely close to it. "I don't think you're scary mister," he decided.

The man put his face in both of his hands dejectedly. "So I messed up even in being a kidnapper."

"Um, mister," the teal head boy tried to catch the man's attention. "Are you okay?"

The man shook his head, his face still buried in his hands. "You should go now kid," he mumbled. "Call your brother or even the police."

"No!" little Kuroko yelled.

The man looked at the teal head boy in surprise and saw resolve in the kid's azure eyes. "What are you saying kid? You should go and—"

"I won't leave especially when mister look so sad," little Kuroko stubbornly said, cutting off the man. "I'm just a kid and I can't do anything much but I can at least listen to your problems."

The man gaped at the teal head boy in wonder and sadly smiled. "You're a weird kid."

Little Kuroko smiled back. "My name is Kuroko Tetsuya. You can call me Kuroko, mister."

"My name is Minoru Kichirou (1)," the man introduced himself. "Nice to meet you Kuroko-kun."

* * *

"Found anything?" Aomine asked as he saw the blond ace of Kaijou in front of a store and approached him.

Kise tried to catch his breath before answering. "No. How about Aominecchi?"

The blue head shook his head impatiently. "No, but my instinct tells me that Tetsu's nearby." He pointed at the road to their left, showing rows of houses. "You go this way and I'll check the shopping district."

The blond head looked at Aomine in disbelief. "Eh? But Aominecchi we should try—"

The blue haired ace ignored him and ran to direction of the shopping district.

"—calling the police," Kise finished; he sighed and ran his hand through his hair. He then sprinted through the neighborhood, looking for any sign of his former instructor.

* * *

"You see, I'm not really a kidnapper," Minoru started his story; he and the teal head boy were now sitting on the bench side by side. "I just really need a lot of money and fast. I thought that if I kidnapped a kid and demand a ransom, I could get it."

"But, Minoru-san, why do you need to kidnapped someone for money?" little Kuroko asked. "Don't you have a job?"

"That's the thing, I don't have any job," the raven man answered miserably. "I tried every possible job I could find. But either I get fired due to clumsiness or maybe because of my unluckiness that the places I work for always get bankrupt." He then sighed in defeat. "Not only that, my wife found out that to pay our huge debt, I had to sell our house. She left me for another man after that. So not only am I jobless and homeless, I don't even have anyone except for my mother."

"So you're staying with you mother now, Minoru-san?"

"Yeah…" Minoru nodded weakly. "But my mother is already old and weak and I don't want to burden her more with my worries. That's why I thought if I could get a lot of money in a short time, maybe I could get my mother the best care she deserves and probably get my wife back. So I decided that the best way to do that was to become a criminal."

"I went to a yakuza family to join but they were too scary and intimidating, and I ran away before they could see me. The same thing happened when I tried to join some gangs. And then one day, my mother was watching a movie where there was a kidnapping scene and that's when I got the idea of doing the same thing. Then I saw you, thought it was a good chance and took you away from your brother." He turned to the teal head boy beside him and bowed his head. "I'm sorry Kuroko-kun, for doing this to you."

"It's okay Minoru-san. I understand," little Kuroko said, having already forgiven the man for what he did. "I know that you have many problems just like you said but it doesn't mean that you have to do something bad to solve it."

"I know," the raven man despondently said.

"Do you think you're mother and your wife will be happy if they found out where you got a lot of money?"

Minoru shook his head. "…No."

"You said that you've already tried many jobs but maybe they weren't the right job for you. Everyone has their own talents and abilities; you just have to know what is yours. If you give up now, you'll never find the answer."

The raven man looked shocked at the teal head boy's advice.

"Doing something cruel and terrible isn't the answer. Sure you'll get a lot of money but I know that Minoru-san will regret doing it. I know that Minoru-san isn't a bad person. You already felt guilty for kidnapping me, which just shows that you have a good heart." Little Kuroko grasped Minoru's hand. "Many people face challenges everyday like you but if you believe in yourself and never give up, I'm sure you can overcome it."

The raven man could feel tears brimming in his eyes. "You're right. I don't think I can ever show my face to my mother if I did that."

"I'm sure your mother already knows about your problems. Mothers are like that, they always know when their son or daughter is suffering. You just need to talk to her and help each other out. She's the only family you have left and she genuinely cares for you so you have to protect and take care of each other."

Hearing the words the teal head boy spoken, Minoru couldn't help it and cried his heart out, his tears flowing in his cheeks were full of regret for trying to hurt someone because of his selfishness, and sadness because he couldn't do anything and relief for finally unburdening his troubles to someone. He cried for his mother, his wife, for the situation he was in and especially for himself. But most of all, he cried in happiness because finally, he got to meet someone who can understand him.

The teal head boy patted the raven man's hand in comfort, reassuring him of his presence and let him cry his dilemmas away.

* * *

"Aominecchi!" Kise yelled, catching the attention of the blue head and ran towards him. "Have you found anything?"

"No…" Aomine said, he was frustrated that they couldn't find little Kuroko and he was starting to get worried as well.

The blond ace watched the frustrated teen sympathetically. He knows what the blue head was feeling since he was feeling the same way, too. "There's a nearby park here, we should check there," he suggested.

Aomine didn't say anything and just nodded.

The blond and blue haired aces went to the nearby park and upon reaching there, immediately saw little Kuroko with the kidnapper. They ran towards the teal head boy. "Tetsu!" Aomine shouted.

The teal head boy looked up when he heard his name and saw his Aomine nii-chan, and even his Kise nii-chan was there. He smiled and waved at them as he stood up on the bench. "Aomine nii-chan! Kise nii-chan!"

The blue head ran faster and suddenly grabbed the raven man's collar when he was within reach. "You bastard! I'll make you pay for kidnapping Tetsu!" He made a fist and prepared to punch the kidnapper.

Little Kuroko's eyes widen. "No! Don't hurt him Aomine nii-chan!" he screamed.

Minoru closed his eyes, preparing himself for the inevitable. After a few seconds and when the punch didn't come, he nervously opened his eyes and saw the teen's fist centimeters from his face. He gulped apprehensively.

Aomine pulled back his fist but didn't let go of the raven man (there's no way in hell he's going to give the bastard a chance to ran off), and turned to the teal head boy. "What are you talking about Tetsu? This guy just kidnapped you!" he said, clearly pissed.

"Aominecchi's right, Kurokocchi," the blond added. "We should turn him in to the police."

Little Kuroko shook his head adamantly. "It's a misunderstanding. Minoru-san isn't a bad person."

"Th-That's right," Minoru butted in the conversation. "I didn't mean to kidnap him."

The blue haired ace glared hard at the raven man. "I'm not talking to you."

Minoru's face paled even more and nodded. _Scary!_

The teal head boy looked pleadingly at the two teens especially Aomine. "Please Aomine nii-chan, Kise nii-chan, just listen to him."

Kise—who was easily susceptible to little Kuroko's puppy-dog eyes—simply gave in and tried to persuade the blue head as well. "Aominecchi, maybe we should try listening to the whole story first before we do anything."

Seeing that he has no choice, Aomine pushed the raven man to the bench, crossed his arms and glared at him. "Talk," he ordered.

Minoru fearfully gulped and started telling his story, how he always got fired in his jobs, his family situation, his reason for kidnapping the teal head boy and how little Kuroko helped him by giving him an advice.

The blue head wasn't entirely convinced and continued glaring the man. "So what if Tetsu gave you an advice, that doesn't mean that there wouldn't be a chance that you won't do it again."

"I'll never do it again. I promise," Minoru said resolutely. "I don't want to burden my mother more with my problems, she's already struggling as it is." He stood up and bowed low to the ground in front of the two teens. "You can beat me up or do anything you want, just please don't turn me in. I couldn't bear to leave my mother all alone. I'm the only family she has left."

The blond ace was a bit stunned when the raven man suddenly bowed and glanced at Aomine, waiting for his decision. "Aominecchi?"

Aomine looked between the bowed man and the determined teal head boy—who was looking at him imploringly. He uncrossed his arms and then sighed in defeat. "…Fine. We won't turn you in."

Minoru looked up at the blue haired teen in shock when he heard his decision. Even Kise and little Kuroko were also taken by surprise.

"Don't get me wrong, I still haven't forgiven you for taking Tetsu." Aomine gave the man a deathly glare. "Just don't do it again, got it?"

The raven man nodded his head in both fear and gratitude as tears gathered in the corner of his eyes. "Thank you so much for listening to me and for understanding my situation." He tearfully turned to the teal head boy. "Thank you Kuroko-kun. I wouldn't know what I would have done if I haven't met you."

Little Kuroko widely smiled. "You're welcome Minoru-san. Just take care of your mother, okay?"

Minoru nodded again and turned to the two teens to bow again. He said his goodbyes to the teal head boy and walked away.

Little Kuroko waved his hand in goodbye to the retreating man. "Bye Minoru-san!"

Minoru glanced back, waved back to the teal head boy and quietly left the park, leaving the two high school basketball players and one kid behind.

Once he was sure that the man really left, the blond ace instantly engulf little Kuroko to a bone-crushing hug. "Kurokocchi! I'm glad you're safe Kurokocchi!" He rubbed his cheeks with Kuroko's. "I was so worried when I bumped into Aominecchi and said that you've been kidnapped and I—"he stopped when the blue head suddenly smacked him at the back of his head.

"Stop suffocating Tetsu, you idiot," Aomine deadpanned.

Kise let go of the teal head boy and rubbed the back of his head. "That hurt Aominecchi!"

The blue haired teen ignored him and held out his hand to little Kuroko. "Let's go Tetsu. Satsuki must be looking for us."

The teal head boy took the offered hand. "Un!"

Both the former light and shadow of Teikou started to walk away with the blond hastily following suit. "Wait for me Kurokocchi, Aominecchi!"

* * *

The three players of the Generation of Miracles were walking to the convenient store when Kise decided to ask little Kuroko a question. "Kurokocchi, where will you stay tomorrow?"

The teal head boy put his finger on his chin in thought. "Hmm…I don't know yet."

"Then Kurokocchi can stay with me!"

"Okay—"

The blond grinned widely; radiating so much happiness because he was overjoyed that little Kuroko will be with him tomorrow.

"—I pick Murasaki nii-chan then!" the teal head boy decided.

Kise felt like an invisible boulder slammed down on him. "But, Kurokocchi, why~?" he complained.

"Because I already saw Kise nii-chan today."

"That's not fair!"

On the other hand, Aomine tried to hide his laughter but couldn't help letting out a snicker when he heard his former shadow's decision.

"Please Kurokocchi!" Kise pleaded, refusing to give up.

"No."

While the blond begged little Kuroko to choose him, the blue haired ace felt his phone vibrating. He took his phone out of his pocket and answered, thinking it was Momoi. "Oi, where the hell are—"

"_Is that how you answer your phone Daiki?"_

Aomine almost dropped his phone when he heard his former captain's voice. "A-Aka…Akashi…?"

"_Did you think I wouldn't found out that Tetsuya was almost kidnapped?"_

"W-Wait, Akashi, listen first, you don't know the whole story yet. I can explain," the blue head said frantically.

"_I know everything so there's no need for further explanation. Be grateful that Tetsuya wasn't taken by real kidnappers because if that were to happen, well, I'm sure you know the consequences to that don't you Daiki?"_

Aomine shuddered in fear. It doesn't take a genius to know what Akashi will do to him if that really happened.

"_As it is, I couldn't tor—I mean, punished you since Tetsuya is safe now and I'm busy here in Kyoto."_

_You almost said torture! And I know that was on purpose! _The blue head inwardly protested. Nevertheless, he breathed a sigh of relief that his former captain can't punish him.

"_However, I can still burn your collection of gravure magazines."_

"What?!"

"_That's your punishment for being careless with Tetsuya."_

"O-Oi, wait, Akashi—"the red haired captain hanged up before Aomine could finish his tirade.

"Was that Sei-nii, Aomine nii-chan?" the teal head boy asked, Kise stopped pleading him when they heard the blue head uttered Akashi's name.

"…A-Ah…" Aomine said as he looked down on little Kuroko, his mind was now blank thanks to the red head's threat. He could also feel the sympathetic gaze the blond was giving him.

The teal head boy—oblivious to what happened—tugged the blue head's left hand. "We have to go Aomine nii-chan. Momoi nee-chan will worry if we don't meet up with her soon." He turned to his Kise nii-chan. "Are you going to join us Kise nii-chan?"

The blond shook his head sadly. "I can't. I have photo-shoot scheduled today."

"Photo-shoot?"

Kise smiled. "Ah, I didn't tell you yet but I work as a part-time model."

Little Kuroko's cerulean eyes widen and sparkled in interest. "Kise nii-chan is a model?"

The blond nodded and crouched down to the teal head boy's height. "I'll show Kurokocchi my photobooks and magazines when it's my turn to take care of Kurokocchi."

"I'd like that! Then good luck on your photo-shoot Kise nii-chan. I'll see you soon."

Kise couldn't help himself and hugged little Kuroko again. "Kurokocchi is so cute~! I'll miss you!" He let go of the poor kid after a minute of cuddling him and said goodbye. "Bye Kurokocchi! Take care, okay?"

The teal head boy nodded and waved in goodbye. "Bye Kise nii-chan!"

"You, too Aominecchi," the blond said to his former teammate.

Aomine—still in shock—just silently nodded his head at Kise.

The blond ace of Kaijou left and walked towards the train station, leaving the ace and phantom sixth man of the Generation of Miracles in the park.

"Let's go Aomine nii-chan," little Kuroko said, pulling Aomine to the nearest convenient store.

* * *

The blue haired ace of Touou quickly said goodbye to little Kuroko and Momoi much to their utter confusion, when they arrived in front of the pink head's house after their trip to the convenient store. He rushed inside his home and up to the second floor. He hurriedly opened the door to his room, went inside and immediately checked his collection of gravure magazines. He sighed in relief when he saw that the magazines were still there and in perfect shape. _Whew, maybe Akashi wasn't serious and forgot about it_, he thought, relieved.

After finally calming himself down by skimming the latest release of Horikita Mai's (2) photobook and hiding it under his bed, Aomine then took his overnight bag, which he packed beforehand (his mother forced him to), and left the house to stay at his uncle's place for the night.

* * *

The next morning, Aomine lazily yawned as he walked towards his home from his uncle's. He woke up early so he could catch the first train to Tokyo and sleep the whole day away. Yesterday was tiring for him.

Upon arriving, he went inside the house and up to his room, dumping his bag on the corner. He sat on his bed and sluggishly groped for his Horikita Mai photobook that he hid under his bed. When he couldn't feel it, he looked under his bed and noticed that nothing was there. He checked his bedside table as well but couldn't find anything. _Must have left it somewhere_, he thought, unperturbed.

He moved towards his bookshelf full of novels (courtesy of his parents), basketball magazines, manga, and of course, his gravure magazines. His dark blue eyes widen when he saw that half of his bookshelf were empty. He searched for his Horikita Mai photobooks and even his Shinozaki Aki (3) photobooks but couldn't find them anywhere. He even checked his secret stash of porn but it was gone, too.

_Who could do—_he stopped. There was only one person who could something like this and that person even warned him beforehand.

"Damn you Akashi!" Aomine shouted at the top of his lungs, uncaring that the whole neighborhood can hear his scream.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the student council room of Rakuzan High School, the student council president (4) and captain of the basketball club—Akashi Seijuurou smirked. _I don't forget any of my promises Daiki_, he thought, self-satisfied and went back to his paperwork.

* * *

**Next Chapter: Sweet Shopping**

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**Notes:**

**(1) Minoru Kichirou -** Minoru (実) means 'truth' since for me, despite what he did, he's an honest man. Kichirou for _Kichi _(吉) means 'good luck' and _rou _(郎)for 'son' because his mother believes he's a good son. He wasn't supposed to have a name and I was planning to have Aomine beat the crap out of him. But while I was in the middle of writing this, he just started telling his story which I tsukkomi-ed with "Why the hell are you telling your story?! You're the kidnapper! You're just an extra character!" My sister gave me a weird look when I accidentally said that out loud. (Also, note to self: Never watch Gintama before writing anything because I tend to add tsukkomis in the strories.) In the end, I added his story and have Kuro-chan helped him. In turned out okay, so I guess it was a good thing.

Another one was Kise. He wasn't supposed to be in this omake but his character kept hovering in the back of mind, saying "Yukicchi, please include me!" "It'll be more fun if I was there!" "I wanna see Kurokocchi, Yukicchi!" "Yukicchi!" To say that it was annoying was an understatement. He even invaded my dreams! Suffice to say, I gave up and reluctantly included him. I finally got my peace after that. And as punishment for annoying me, I let Kuro-chan picked Murasakibara instead of him.

**(2) Horikita Mai - **If you're a fan of Aomine, you already who this is. Horikita Mai is a gravure model in the KnB-verse and is Aomine's favorite (because she's F-cup). Aomine became more of a fan when he met (and touched) her in a summer festival when he was in middle school, according to Replace 3 Omake: Dai-chan's Awakening.

**(3) Shinozaki Aki - **Another gravure model. Apparently, Aomine likes her but not as much as Horikita Mai though.

**(4) Student Council President - **I don't know all the details since I only read the summaries, but according to Replace 4, Akashi is the student council president even though he's a first year. Akashi-kun how in the world did you do that? On second thought, never mind. If I were a student in Rakuzan, I would have voted for him to be the SC President. I mean, who wouldn't? Admit it, even you would vote for him.

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**A/N:** Dear readers, it pains me to say this but I have a little bit of a bad news. I won't be updating Regression for two weeks. Now, before you throw me some tomatoes or get pitch forks, there's a reason for this. It's not because of writer blocks that I won't be updating, I have a lot of ideas for Murasakibara's chapter. I already even outline all the chapters up to the end so don't worry, I will finish this and won't leave you hanging. It's just that for some reason, whenever I try to write it feels lacking something and I feel unsatisfied so I ended up deleting them. And I don't want to post a half-assed chapter just because I need to update. My readers deserve more than that.

So I'm sorry for this, anyway it's just for two weeks. And hey, maybe watching episode 27 or 28 of KuroBasu will give me that spark I need. Before you ask, I'm not hiatus or anything, I'll be still here online, reading fics and such. So if you have any questions or just want to say hi, just drop by a review or PM me, I won't mind. Once again, I'm sorry. I hope you understand. *bows*


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